Pursuit
by ElenaTheHyperactiveFangirl14
Summary: When Hiccup goes to retrieve the egg belonging to the King of Dragons, he is forced to fight two deadly enemies simultaneously. With Toothless separated from him, Hiccup is quickly defeated and captured by Krogan and Johann for some sinister purpose. An alternate ending to RTTE S6E13. Rated for violence, blood and minor swearing. Whump, angst, fluff. Update coming soon!
1. Chapter 1

**Hi guys! So here's yet another new story I'm working on...'Wanted' is my priority still, but I'll be publishing other stories while I have writer's block for that story. For those who read my Teen Titans story, 'Trapped,' that one will be updated soon...I think...**

 **Welcome to 'Pursuit,' my King of Dragons alternate ending. I took advantage of all the glorious whump opportunities in that episode and wrote this beauty last night... prepare for Hiccup!whump, Hiccstrid, and Toothless angst. This will be a multi-chapter story.**

* * *

 **Pursuit**

 **Summary: When Hiccup goes to retrieve the egg belonging to the King of Dragons, he is forced to fight two deadly enemies simultaneously. With Toothless separated from him by a wall of ice and rock, Hiccup is quickly defeated. Severely wounded and completely helpless, the young heir is captured by Krogan and Johann for some sinister purpose. A** **n alternate ending to RTTE Season Six, Episode Thirteen.**

 **Rating: T for violence, blood, and minor swearing.**

 **Pairings: Hiccstrid, Heathlegs, and Dagla.**

 **Genre: Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Suspense**

 **Enjoy, and leave a review!**

 **Chapter One**

Hiccup darted around a huge spike of ice, then stopped short as he saw what was in the next cavern- a single icy pedestal, on which lay a single spiked egg. "Oh my Thor," he whispered, before moving forward. He needed to make sure the King of Dragons - and Hiccup was sure that was what this egg belonged to - was evacuated off the island before the Flyers found it. Reaching out, he wrapped his hands around the egg, preparing to lift it into his satchel.

"Well now, what do we have here?" spoke a voice suddenly, making Hiccup jump, startled. Looking up, the heir froze as he saw Johann and Krogan standing on the other side of the cavern. Silently, Hiccup placed the egg back on the pedestal and stepped forward, between it and the two men.

"Well done, Mast'r Hiccup!" drawled Johann, voice dripping with mockery. "It seems as though you've discovered the King of Dragons at last...unfortunately, you won't be taking that egg anywhere. Surrender, Hiccup Haddock; we've won."

"You haven't won yet, Johann." Hiccup moved forward, grabbing his shield and igniting Inferno. "I won't let you get this egg."  
Johann chuckled sinisterly. "Ah, Hiccup. You're always so predictable. So boldly heroic. I do wish I didn't have to kill you."

"You don't," Hiccup answered. "I'll take the egg and make sure it's safe. We'll save the King of Dragons, and you can watch from Outcast prison."

Johann laughed. "That's what I like about you, Hiccup. You're so innocent, so quick to assume you have won. On the other hand, you're so disgustingly sentimental it makes me sick."

Hiccup only scowled, keeping an eye on both Johann and Krogan as they spread out and began to approach him. This wasn't fair, he thought desperately. It wasn't a fair fight in the least. Gods, he could barely win a sparring match against his own girlfriend, let alone a two-on-one battle against two highly skilled grown men. He might not make it out of this one, he realized.

"You know this isn't a fair fight," Krogan called. "Give up, Haddock. You don't stand a chance."

"Maybe not," Hiccup replied grimly, readying his sword. "But I've beaten the odds before."

Krogan attacked first, swinging his weapon at Hiccup's head. The heir only barely dodged, rolling out of the way and firing a bola from his shield towards Krogan's legs. Yelping as he toppled to the ground, the man hurried to untangle the ropes. Hiccup quickly distanced himself from Krogan, turning his attention to Johann just in time to dodge a knife spinning through the air in his direction.

Johann chuckled, throwing another knife. This one only barely grazed Hiccup's shoulder, but the pain that exploded in the boy's arm was agonizing. Nearly dropping his sword, Hiccup used his shield to stop the next two daggers before being tackled from the side. He and Krogan both fell to the ground, as though in slow motion.

Air whooshed out of his lungs as his chest hit the ground. For an instant, Inferno was pinned beneath him as he squirmed under Krogan's weight, and Hiccup writhed as the fiery blade pressed into his arm, slicing and burning his clothes and skin. Indescribable pain shot through his entire right side, and yet another silent scream escaped his lips. His sight grew dim, and any noise sounded like it came from under water, muffled and distorted. Several agonizing seconds passed, and Hiccup thought for a moment that he might pass out.

Then, in a sudden, brutal instant, his senses returned in full force. The acrid smell of burning flesh filled his nostrils, and the sound of his own scream of pain filled his ears. Hiccup writhed and thrashed as the pain surged through his body, even though the sword was no longer touching him. Shaking and sobbing with the pain of his wound, he curled up into the fetal position, helpless.

"Ah, the irony," Johann said, chuckling softly. "Brought down by your own weapon."

Hiccup didn't reply, his cries echoing through the cavern. Krogan sighed in annoyance. "Are we taking him with us?"

"Of course," Johann replied ominously. "We have unfinished business to discuss. And besides, he'll make a prime bargaining chip against the other Riders. After all, they're all so very loyal. Just like their leader...isn't that right, Hiccup?"

Hiccup only moaned weakly, unable to resist as Krogan scooped him up. As his vision darkened, he saw Johann pick up the dragon egg. Then the world went black.

* * *

Toothless had only just resigned himself to being separated from his Rider. After pawing and scratching at the ice and rock, he huffed and plopped down, glaring at the wall as though it might wither and crumble beneath his gaze. When he heard Hiccup scream, however, he leapt to his feet and snarled. His human cried out again; the sound echoing even through the wall of rock and ice that separated Toothless from Hiccup. The scream was high and almost unnatural to Toothless, who had only seen his Rider in this much pain once before, after the battle with the Red Death.

Without further hesitation, Toothless fired a plasma blast at the wall, but the impact barely made a dent. Desperately, the Night Fury rammed his body into the wall, whining in pain as the maneuver failed. Despite his failure, however, he leapt back and slammed into the wall again.

Hiccup needed him. The boy was alone and hurting, and Toothless had to save him. The Night Fury attacked the wall a third time, one thought coursing incessantly through his mind. Hiccup. My human. I'm coming. Hiccup. Rider. I'm coming.

Again and again, Toothless crashed into the wall, calling out for his beloved Rider, before he stumbled and fell to the ground, dazed. Even as he fought to get back up, Toothless felt his legs give out, and he crumpled once more. As his toxic green eyes drifted shut, he heard his little human cry out once more, before all went dark. 

* * *

**Well things aren't looking too good for Hiccup or Toothless. What is Johann planning? Will Toothless be okay? And where the heck are the other Riders?**

 **Leave a review!**

 **Elena**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hiya, folks! I'm back with our next installment of Pursuit!**

 **Shout-outs:**

 **-For following this story, thanks to: 29Pieces, Ardnaskela01, Blackyjamm, Cullen159, Darklightningstorm, Ellamena, EmeraldFire512, Horsecrazy92503, JStone98, JeromeHaddock15, Juliet Revell, Mei1395, MissE3, NightwingNinja17, Photolove, Pilyarquitect, Ralyssene118, SpadePirates4Eva, SweenTheSaltine, The Dreaming Dragon, ThePhoenixGhirl, thisizausername, Tuffnut-and-Chicken02, Varghul, When-Brooke-Writes, braveheartcrzy, etglorianna96, , hannahdaspannah, harrypanther, katurdi, .2001, and zena95835. You guys are awesome!**

 **-For adding this story to your faves list, thanks to: Blackyjamm, Dimensional Phaser, Icha icha Minato Kyuubi, JStone98, Juliet Revell, The Dreaming Dragon, ThePhoenixGhirl, Thisizausername, Varghul, WhovianDemiwizard, brywolf, glxriana-swr, katurdi, le-fanaddict, .2001, summer164, and zena95835. Thanks, guys!**

 **-Reviews**

 **katurdi: Lol, I try. I actually have about five RTTE stories going on right now, and they will all have whump:) Ah yes, what does Johann want with Hiccup this time?**

 **Sophhascoconuts: Evil Johann IS the best RTTE villain... he and Krogan are the only ones I can't imagine writing redemption arcs for. I hope you enjoy!**

 **AnaWinchester-Universe67: XD:)**

 **The Dreaming Dragon: I'm glad you like! And I'll try to update all of my fics:)**

 **Silverskril Elysia: Why thank you.**

 **Scribblefoxx: Thank you! I'm glad you like it!**

 **Guest: I have updated! Thank you for reading!**

 **Thisizausername: Aww, thanks! Here's your update!**

 **EllieHofferson: AAAAAHHHH! Cliffhangers! Yay! I'm glad you like the story so far.**

 **Surprise me: Here is your update, my friend!**

 **JeromeHaddock15: I certainly hope so. I love writing this one.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own HTTYD. Or RTTE. Or a private plane. Not even a car. I want a car.**

Chapter Two

Hiccup was unceremoniously dragged into a cell below deck on one of Johann's ships by Krogan and two guards. Only half conscious, he was quickly yanked to a kneeling position before having his hands bound over his head and to an overhead beam. As the heir was secured, the cell's other occupant stirred.

"What's going on...?" asked the man faintly. "Is that... Oh gods...Hiccup Haddock?"

"Looks like you'll have some company," Krogan drawled, aiming a kick to the unfortunate prisoner's gut. "That'll teach you not to betray us again. Good luck lasting an hour with this fool sassing you."

*line break*

Hiccup woke, groaning as his head pounded. What-what happened? Shifting uncomfortably, he grimaced at the pain that coursed through his right side. As he opened his eyes, he cursed inwardly when he realized he had been blindfolded. The next moment, he tasted the gag in his mouth, and the leather strap it was secured with. The acrid taste of leather mixed with the bitterness of his own blood.

His arms were stretched over his head, spread apart with his wrists chained to the wall. Knees resting on the ground, he slumped in a kneeling position with his back to the wall. All he could tell about his surroundings was that he was on a boat; the constant rocking of the floor assured him of that. The swaying motion of the boat caused his stomach to churn unpleasantly, and he sighed. Just what he needed - getting seasick while on a Dragon Flyer boat. Yay.

A sudden thought hit him. Where was Toothless? Had the Flyers found him? Had he been captured as well? Hiccup could remember hearing the dragon's muffled roars through the ice, but he didn't think Toothless had made it through.

But Johann had the egg. And both Dragon Eyes. And Hiccup himself, for that matter. Which meant-Hiccup grudgingly admitted - that the ex-trader had access to all the dragon knowledge in the known world. Also anything he would need to conquer Berk, the Edge, the Outcasts, Berserkers, Wingmaidens, or the Defenders of the Wing. Hiccup wasn't one to boast- at all, really- but he held enough knowledge about dragons and his allies to pretty much take over the archipelago.

And that was probably Johann's intent. In Hiccup's experience, the people who captured him always wanted one of three things: Information, something from Berk or the Riders, or something from Hiccup himself. And if they didn't get whatever they wanted...well, it wouldn't be good news for him.

"Ah, Hiccup." The voice was deep but slightly hoarse, an accent lacing each word. It sounded vaguely familiar, but Hiccup had trouble placing it for a moment. Then be realized, and stiffened, turning his head in the direction of the voice's owner.

 _Viggo?!_

"I see you recognize me by my voice," Viggo said, laughing softly. "Hiccup, you're still too good. I warned you it would get you into real trouble one of these days..." Hiccup heard soft shuffling sounds, before gentle hands removed his blindfold. After blinking furiously to allow his eyes to adjust to the light, Hiccup focused on his surroundings.

The concerned face of Viggo Grimborn was both relieving and disconcerting to Hiccup. As Viggo undid the strap to Hiccup's gag, the heir held his breath, flinching as the leather was peeled away from his raw and bleeding lips. Once his mouth was free, he licked his lips, trying to ignore the lingering taste of leather and blood. Groaning softly, he looked up. "V-Viggo?"

The man nodded before pulling his hands up in front of his chest and revealing thick manacles around his wrists, the chains binding him to the wall while still allowing movement. "I mean you no harm. I am a prisoner here as well."

Hiccup hesitated. True; the last time they met, Viggo had saved his life. But what if this was just yet another betrayal? Could he trust the man?

Viggo seemed to notice his hesitation. "I see I must regain your trust."

"It's...it's not that." Hiccup coughed in an effort to clear his throat, making up his mind. "I can't help but trust you after what happened with Johann and Krogan. But...I thought you were dead...?"

Viggo nodded grimly. "Ah yes. By all rights, I should indeed be dead..."

"The...the Skrill?" Hiccup asked in disbelief.

"Yes. That dragon saved my life. Ironic, isn't it?"

"Uh-huh."

Viggo smiled faintly, leaning backward. "Forgive me, Hiccup; I would untie you, but..." He gestured at the chains that bound him to the wall. They were too short to allow the man to reach Hiccup's wrists.

The heir only nodded, grimacing as the motion tugged on his burned arm. "You did...what you could. Thank you."

"How did Johann and Krogan manage to capture you this time?" Viggo asked.

"I got separated from Toothless...had to fight both Krogan and Johann at once."

"Not exactly a fair fight," Viggo murmured.

"Tell me about it," Hiccup replied. "I found the egg belonging to the King of Dragons, and they found me."

"I take it that's where that burn came from?"

Hiccup grimaced, nodding. "Yeah...not my finest moment. Krogan tackled me and I...landed on my sword...?" He chuckled softly, still disbelieving. "Even after all of this, I wasn't brought down by one of my enemies. I just had to fall on my own sword."

"How embarrassing," Viggo commented dryly.

"What about you?" Hiccup asked suddenly. "How'd you get caught?"

"The Skrill brought me to a group of Hunters who still remained loyal to me. With their help, I recovered from the arrow wounds I received. No sooner was I back on my feet than Krogan's Flyers showed up. It seems Johann had heard rumors of remaining Dragon Hunters, and decided that my influence had to be wiped out." He swallowed, a distant look coming into his eyes. "I was...the only one to escape. I didn't make it far before the Flyers caught me. That was about three days ago."

Hiccup saw the genuine sadness in the older man's eyes. "I'm sorry." But Viggo only smiled sadly.

"In war, Hiccup, this is what happens. Though every loss is tragic, one learns to endure. To pick himself up off the ground and keep walking." He glanced up, meeting Hiccup's eyes. "Of course, that doesn't mean you should forget. Cope, yes- don't plague yourself with guilt...but never forget. That's where I made my mistake...I spent so long trying to block out the memory of my sins that it almost eradicated my conscience. We learn from our mistakes."

"One would assume so," a new voice said, startling both Viggo and Hiccup, who hadn't heard the door open. Chains rattled softly as they both turned to lol at the newcomer. "But for you two...you never learn." Johann chuckled darkly.

*line break*

 **So...yeah. Another cliffhanger. Sorry folks. Keep those reviews coming! *smiles innocently* I love them.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hiya, guys! Here's the third chapter to Pursuit! Hope you enjoy!**

 **Shout-outs**

 **For favoriting this story, thanks to: yvettemao, ugh, sparklydog9, abcreads, When-Brooke-Writes, Kenrose996, and JeromeHaddock15**

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 **For reviewing this story:**

 **katurdi: Lol, I loved Viggo this season too! And yes, I have many story ideas and request, the pile is just really big. Here's your chapter!**

 **JeromeHaddock15: Ah yes, cliffies! Thanks for reading!**

 **Pilyarquitect: YEEESSSSSS VIGGO IS ALIVE! Yeah, I felt pretty bad for him too. The redemption arc was PERFECT! And the Skrill:) Poor Hiccup and Viggo, they're in for a lot of trouble...**

 **harrypanther: Thanks! And yeah, Johann doesn't mean well...**

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 **Guest (1): I'm glad you like it:) thanks for reading!**

 **Guest (2): Thanks! (though I really hope you don't mean the slash pairing, just the friendship)**

 **Sophhascoconuts: Aww, thanks! I tried to be original with it, and avoid clichés. And yes! I love the idea of Hiccup and Viggo as buddies *ahem*Maces and Talons buddies ahem***

 **ThePhoenixGhirl: Thank you!**

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 **Thisizausername: Aww, thanks! I love writing Viggo's character.**

 **Disclaimer- I don't own HTTYD, RTTE, or related franchises. That's probably a good thing.**

Chapter 3

Damn. Johann and Krogan, come to gloat. Hiccup glared at the two men venomously. "Johann. What do you want?"

From beside him, Viggo made a soft noise of alarm. "Hiccup, don't -"

Johann backhanded the heir across the face, so hard that Hiccup saw stars. "Don't disrespect me, boy. That's the first lesson you need to learn."

Hiccup swallowed back the taste of blood and scowled, but remained silent.

Johann towered over him, a satisfied smirk twisting his features. "I've waited for a long time to have you in my grasp, boy." The ex-trader paced before Hiccup, boots thumping forebodingly on the wood floor. He chuckled at the heir's vicious glare, and bent down slightly, tipping up Hiccup's chin with one finger. "What? You have something to say?"

Hiccup flinched before scowling. He wouldn't let the man intimidate him. "Why did you bring me here? You already have the egg, what more do you want?"

Johann smiled in satisfaction, a mad glint coming into his eyes. "A few reasons, actually. You are far more valuable than you realize, Hiccup. With your dragon knowledge, you would make an invaluable pawn."

"What makes you think I'll agree to help you?" Hiccup spat.

"The fact that your cooperation will secure the safety of your friends," Johann shot back.

Hiccup froze, eyes widening as dread filled him. "What?" he breathed. "They- you're lying. You don't have them."

"You're right; I don't," Johann replied. "However, that doesn't mean I can't touch them. Without you, they're twice as vulnerable. I can launch an attack that they'll be helpless against without your help. I can burn Dragons' Edge to the ground."

"I'll personally feed your Riders to the Singetails," Krogan threatened. "Starting with the girl."

"Astrid..." Hiccup whispered, shuddering at the thought of his betrothed suffering such a fate.

"So, Hiccup..." Johann continued, crouching down so that he was eye level with the young Dragon Rider. "Will you reconsider my offer?"

Hiccup felt torn. He couldn't let anything happen to the Riders, but on the other hand, if he did what Johann asked, he would endanger more people than just his friends.

A sudden thought occurred to him, something he had forgotten until that moment. Letting out a soft sigh of relief, he allowed a grin to cross his face.

Johann wasn't so smart, after all.

* * *

Viggo watched the exchange silently. As Johann declared his ultimatum, the ex-dragon hunter sympathized with Hiccup. The young man was clearly torn between protecting his friends and saving the dragons... Only Viggo saw the smirk on Hiccup's face at first, and he frowned in confusion. Why the Hel is he smiling at a time like this? Then a soft chuckle echoed through the silent cell, and his eyes widened in shock as he realized the sound was coming from Hiccup.

"What's wrong with you?!" Krogan demanded, seizing Hiccup by the hair and jerking his head upwards. "Didn't you hear him?"

Johann merely regarded the heir curiously, as though wondering if his wound had affected his mental health. As for Viggo, he simply shrugged and settled back against the wall, watching as though the situation was a game of Maces and Talons rather than an interrogation.

Hiccup only smiled wider. "Oh, Johann. You're even more stupid than I thought."

Johann grunted indignantly. "And how is that?"

"You say you can kill my friends, but you can't, can you?" Hiccup rasped. "Most of your Flyers are gone, and you have no Singetails. Your fleet of ships has been decimated. In fact, you were beaten by the Riders and you're retreating as we speak."

Johann looked offended. "How did you know that?"

Hiccup sighed. "We're on a boat, sailing north. The Edge is south. If you were in retreat, the Riders wouldn't allow you past the island. You have few men and even fewer ships. Johann, you can't even reach Berk or the Edge, let alone actually stand a chance against them in battle. You're bluffing."

Viggo smirked, impressed, while Krogan simply stared dumbfounded at the boy. Johann, on the other hand, was not happy. He slammed a fist into Hiccup's cheek, two of his rings slicing shallow grazes into the heir's skin. Hiccup flinched, and lifted his eyes to Johann's just in time to receive a second hit, this time to the jaw. The taste of blood filled his mouth as he bit his lip by accident, but he ignored it, distracted by Johann's next words.

"Well, then, Hiccup," the traitor snarled. "I may not be able to use your friends as leverage, but I can still be very persuasive. I didn't want to have to do this, but I have no choice..." He pulled out a dagger and advanced towards the heir. "I suppose I'll have to draw blood to get what I want."

"Johann, you don't want to do this..." Hiccup cautioned, edging away from his enraged captor.

"Johann, don't -" Viggo began softly, before a kick met his ribs and he doubled over, coughing. Krogan towered over the imprisoned man, smirking. "Well, we can't have you interfering, now can we?"

"Actually, Hiccup," Johann said in response to Hiccup's words, "I do want to do this. I have for a long time. See, I lied when I said I would rather have avoided a more forceful interrogation... It's time you were put in your place, boy."

Viggo saw Hiccup's eyes fill with real fear for the first time. As Johann advanced, the young man seemed to shudder with anxiety as he cringed backward. His eyes betrayed his youth for once, and the child behind the man showed through.

"Johann, don't touch him!" Viggo hissed, feeling a surge of protective anger. He wanted nothing more than for Hiccup to be out of this place, back with his dragon. No matter what he had done in the past, Hiccup was still a child. Though the heir himself would have argued, in Viggo's mind, eighteen was much too young to be fighting a war.

As a reward for speaking up, Viggo felt Krogan's fist slam into his jaw, effectively shutting him up. In the meantime, Johann placed the tip of the knife on Hiccup's neck, between the collarbones. The heir froze, unable to move for fear of getting cut.

Johann traced the blade lightly down Hiccup's chest, the wickedly sharp knife slicing cleanly through the fabric of his shirt. "Tell me, Hiccup. Have you ever felt the blade of a knife before?"

Hiccup only stared at him mutely, beginning to shake.

At that moment, muffled shouting was heard above them, from the upper decks of the boat. A muffled boom rocked the vessel, and Hiccup looked up abruptly. "Is that...?"

"Dragon attack!" A voice cried, and Johann swore viciously.

"Krogan, get up there," he ordered. "If it's the wild dragons again, you know what to do. If it's the Riders..." He paused, giving Hiccup a sidelong glance. "Kill them all."

"No!" Hiccup burst out, lunging forward and jerking his hands hard against the chains. For even now, he could hear the familiar roar of a Night Fury.

* * *

(Three Hours Earlier)

Astrid let out a whoop of glee as the last of Johann's ships disappeared from view over the horizon, smoking and filled with the panicked shouts of men fighting to save the ship. Meanwhile, the Riders were nearly unscathed, all of them in one piece and still with their dragons. While the others had all returned to the ground, Astrid had elected to stay out and do one last patrol around the island with Dagur and Atali, hoping to run into Hiccup on the way back. Her betrothed still hadn't returned for some reason, and they had no idea where he was. Of course, knowing Hiccup, he had probably gotten distracted and was on his way back right now. Thor, he was probably already in the Great Hall.

When they were sure the island was safe, they turned towards Berserker Island and headed back. It had been more than an hour since Johann had called a full retreat, and they were only now going to be able to take a break. She smiled in anticipation of a nice, warm fire; perhaps some of Heather's roast yak chops... and Hiccup. Mostly him. His soft, affectionate smile; the way his forest green eyes glinted when he had some new idea; the cute way he chewed his bottom lip when he worked.

But more importantly, she reminded herself, she needed to check on the Riders and their allies, and make sure the King of Dragons was safe. After all, she was second in command- it was her responsibility to ensure the wellbeing of her fellow Riders.

Returning to the Berserker Great Hall, they found the Wingmaidens gathered near the fire, Ruff and Tuff cradling Wingnutt and crooning softly to the baby Razorwhip. Nearby, Mala stood with Snotlout, Fishlegs, and Heather, frowns creasing all their faces. They were speaking in low voices, obviously concerned. Upon seeing Astrid, Dagur, and Atali approaching, Fishlegs paled, being the first to spot the Hofferson, and squeaked in fright before hiding behind Meatlug.

Astrid's eyes narrowed as she walked towards them. "Where's Hiccup and Toothless?" She asked, concerned.

"Um...well, Astrid..." Heather tried, but couldn't seem to get a complete thought out.

"What's wrong?" Astrid demanded. "Where are they?"

Mala cleared her throat. "We found Toothless in the caves. He was passed out, but appears to be fine. He's in Hiccup's hut."

"And Hiccup?" Astrid prompted.

Heather sighed. "Astrid, he's gone," she replied softly. "Along with the egg. That's why Johann called a retreat-he had what he wanted."

 **Well that just happened. Lemme know what you all think!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey peeps! I know it's been forever since I've updated this story, but now that i'm finished with Wanted, i have time to work on this!**

 **Shout-outs:**

 **For favoriting this story, thanks to: Camellarella, Daystrid Hofferson, Emerian, Romantica 21, The Dreaming Dragon, whhsswimmer11**

 **For following this story, thanks to: Camellarella, Cinderrosemc, Daystrid Hofferson, JessicaliliannaPotter, Madistew1998, NightFuryTL, PutMoneyInThyPurse, ScreamingCacti51, The Dreaming Dragon, httydfangirl123, livingwithbooks, violaplayer7, you shall not know my name**

 **For reviewing:**

 **ThePhoenixGhirl: Hehe...sorry...here, have a chappie! *runs away***

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 **Guest: Oh...whoops.**

 **Star: Yes he is. I'm glad I did okay with Viggo!**

 **Guest: Okay, I'm glad you meant the friendship... I'm so confused by ship names sometimes...I love Hictooth!**

 **JeromeHaddock15: Haha, YES CLIFFHANGERS. I'm glad you liked the chapter!**

 **The Dreaming Dragon: Lol, I actually get that response a lot. Thanks!**

 **DragonWriter0316: Thanks! I love Hiccup!Whump with all my heart and will never stop writing it...**

 **Guest: Huh. Well. Here's a chapter. Maybe ask nicely next time...? No offense...**

 **JChttyd: Here's a continuation, I'm glad you like it!**

Chapter Four

Atali gasped softly, eyes widening with worry, but said nothing. Dagur and Astrid, on the other hand, simply stared at Heather, trying to figure out whether she was joking or not.

A long moment of silence passed. Then Dagur dropped his head into his hands, swearing viciously under his breath and tugging furiously on his hair with both fists. "That little idiot..." He whispered, but fear shone in his eyes.

Astrid stared uncomprehendingly at Heather. "He's...gone?" Her eyes welled up and she didn't try to wipe away the tears.

Dagur then did something unexpected. Stepping forward, he slung an arm around Astrid's shoulders, pulling her into an affectionate hug. "We'll find him," he murmured.

"Why does he always have to go and get himself into trouble?" she rasped. "I've gotta save his scrawny butt again."

****line break****

So here they were, soaring over the remainder of Johann's fleet. Astrid could see that the ships were now headed at full speed for the Flyers' base, and tried to judge which boat Hiccup would be on. She knew Johann's boat would probably be near the head of the fleet, but then again, all the boats were relatively identical. She was mounted on Toothless's back, as she knew they would need the Night Fury in the upcoming fight. Stormfly, though miffed, flew nearby.

"We should split up," Astrid called to the Riders. "Heather, take Ruff, Tuff, and Snotlout and go check out the far side of the fleet. Dagur, you're with me and Fishlegs."

Heather waved in acknowledgement and split away from the main group, motioning to Snotlout and the twins to follow her. Once they were nearly out of sight, Dagur let Sleuther glide closer to Toothless.

"We'll find him," the Berserker promised. "You know Hiccup, he won't let anything bad happen."

"To _us,_ " Astrid corrected. "He'll do anything to keep Johann and Krogan away from us. Even sacrificing himself." She swallowed, a lump rising in her throat. "Such an idiot…"

"I don't think he meant to sacrifice himself."

Astrid frowned. "Why not? I thought he stayed behind to negotiate with Johann."

"Hiccup's too smart for that," Dagur said. "He knew we could win, but not if all of us went to get the egg. So he had us create a distraction while he went after it. I don't think he expected a trap, so he was caught completely unaware."

"Do you think Johann originally planned to go after Hiccup, or was he just after the egg?"

Dagur bit his lip grimly. "I think it wasn't out of the question. It wasn't his primary goal, but if he got the chance, he would take it." He paused and sighed. "I'll admit, I'm worried about what Johann wants from Hiccup."

"Information?"

"Probably. And there's a possibility that he's also driven by revenge."

Astrid shrugged. "That makes sense. After all, Hiccup's gotten in his way a lot of times." She fell silent for a few seconds. "But that means…"

"When we find him, Hiccup may not be in such good shape," Dagur said grimly.

They landed on the deck of a ship and left the dragons to guard the little group of Hunters and Flyers still on the ship, while Astrid, Fishlegs, and Dagur charged below deck. They found nothing but wounded men.

The second ship was the same- they found no sign of Hiccup.

It was on the third ship that they found something unusual- a dozen or so battle-ready men, led by Krogan. They barred the way between the Riders and the open hatch to the lower decks. Astrid was immediately suspicious. "Krogan. Where is Hiccup?"

The tall foreigner smirked. "Why? Did you misplace him?"

Dagur snarled. "He's down there, isn't he?" He nodded towards the hatch.

Krogan shrugged, saying nothing.

The next second, a scream rang out, echoing across the deck and over the water around them. Astrid felt a jolt of electricity run through her, and whirled around to stare directly at the open hatch. _Oh my Thor._ "Was that…?"

"You know, I was hoping not to have to do this," called a new voice as Johann climbed up out of the hatch. "This was supposed to be easy." With a grunt, he hoisted another person up onto the deck- the bound form of Hiccup Haddock, bruised and bleeding. Unceremoniously, Johann dropped the heir on the ground, eliciting a strangled cry from Hiccup as his burned arm hit the deck.

"What did you do to him?" Astrid gasped.

"Oh, not much," Johann replied, shrugging. "He actually did quite a bit of this to himself."

"Let him go," Dagur demanded. "Or we'll set this entire ship on fire and take him."

"If you make a single move towards me, I'll kill Hiccup right here and now," Johann declared, flicking his wrist and allowing a knife to slide into his hand. "And I'm sure you wouldn't want that."

"What do you want?" Fishlegs stammered desperately.

"Oh, there are a lot of things I want, Ingerman," Johann replied. "Money, power, success... But right now, all I want is to prove a point. I may have lost this battle, but as a businessman, I know how to win this war. And Hiccup is the key."

"What are you talking about?" Astrid asked. "You know he won't tell you anything."

"I wouldn't be so sure," Krogan shot back.

Hiccup spoke from where he was crumpled on the deck, unable to move. "She's right. I won't help you."

"Shut up, boy," Johann spat, viciously kicking his prisoner in the gut. Hiccup coughed and gasped for air, glaring stubbornly at Johann. Meanwhile, Dagur growled lowly and made to lunge forward, stopped only by Fishlegs' and Astrid's firm grip.

"How dare you?" the Berserker exploded. "Brother! Are you alright?"

Hiccup's eyes turned towards Dagur, and the heir smiled tiredly. "I'm fine, Dagur..."

" _Quiet!_ " Johann hissed, aiming a second kick to Hiccup's stomach.

As the young Dragon Rider gasped for breath, he shot Johann a bitter scowl. Suddenly, Astrid knew what her betrothed was going to do next.

"Hiccup, don't-" she began, but he was already talking.

"Dagur, protect them!" Hiccup called quickly. "Take the Riders back to Berk. Make sure my dad's okay. I'll be fine, just-" Johann grabbed Hiccup by the torn front of his shirt and pulled him up to eye level. "You're a stubborn one, Hiccup," he hissed. "I guess I'll have to teach you a lesson."

"Don't touch him!" Dagur protested, but Johann was already acting. He shoved Hiccup towards Krogan. "Hold him. I'll deal with him later." Krogan nodded, throwing his captive to the ground and placing a foot on the boy's back, gripping Hiccup's left wrist with both hands.

"Guys, _go!"_ Hiccup cried out, ignoring Krogan's growl of warning and the sharp tug on his arm. "Don't worry about me, just leave! You'll find me…"

Astrid was torn. "I…I can't…"

"Astrid, just _go!"_ Hiccup nearly screamed. "Listen to me for once in your life!" He paused. "Be the leader I know you are. Dagur, please, get her out of here…"

Dagur seized Astrid by the shoulders, beginning to pull her away. "I'll come back for you, Brother," he called.

Hiccup nodded. "I know." Then his face was ground into the wood planks of the deck as Krogan shoved him against the ground.

Dagur dragged Astrid, kicking and screaming, onto Toothless's back. Fishlegs looked back once, then followed, climbing onto Meatlug. Then the three Riders and four dragons took off, leaving Hiccup alone in his captor's grasp.

 **So...that happened. Have fun...**


	5. Chapter 5

**HEYYYYYY FOLKS! I'm back! And within a week of the last update, too! Yay me!**

 **Shout-outs:**

 **THANK YOU to all my peeps who favorited and/or followed this story! I love you all! *hugs them* *passes out free cookies***

 **When-Brooke-Writes: You want answers, you say?...maybe this will help.**

 **dabzzygirl: Aww, thanks for following! And it does kinda seem similar... Viggo isn't so bad a guy, maybe he has more in common with Stoick than anyone thinks!**

 **The Dreaming Dragon: Yeah, there was a bit of a complication uploading that chapter, but it's there! Thanks for sticking with me!**

 **r-a-e121: OMT I LOVE YOU TOO! Yes, the whump is sad but exciting but sad but amazing but sad but wonderful. And maybe... you never know!**

 **RainDragon28: Thanks! I love your stories so much, especially Turn A Blind Eye, Eagle Eye, and Grim Troubles! I especially love that Sorcerer's Apprentice reference; I just watched the movie for the first time and love it!**

 **JChttyd: Yes...*sits in shadows and strokes evil pet cat* what will happen next?**

 **SweenTheSaltine: Yeah...no one knows what that means. I hope it's positive...*sweatdrops***

 **JeromeHaddock15: Indeed; it is always his mouth that gets him in trouble. Poor kid doesn't know when to shut up.**

 **Guest: I missed it too...**

 **Sophhascoconuts: I'm glad to be writing it again!**

 **On with the story! \ / (-) (-) ~/\~ ‾‾‾‾**

 **(btw, this (^) is Ted the grumpy samurai. Say hi, Ted.)**

Chapter Five

Hiccup felt his arm stretch, the joint of his shoulder popping dangerously. Trying not to cry out from the pain, he groaned and bit his lip, feeling the rough, splintered wood of the deck chafe against his face. He heard his friends take off; felt a momentary rush of despair and then a wave of guilt. It was for the best…they needed to escape, and he would only slow them down.

"You never learn, do you, Hiccup?" asked a voice from above him. _Johann._ Hiccup bit his lip and didn't answer. "You always have been a stubborn one. I suppose some things never change…" The ex-trader knelt down, but Hiccup still couldn't see anything except Johann's boots, only inches from his face. "Now, where were we?"

****line break****

Viggo looked up, startled, as a scream rang out from above. _Hiccup._ So the Riders hadn't managed to retrieve their leader. Of course they hadn't. He cursed softly. The boy needed to get out of this place, before Johann and Krogan broke him completely…Viggo knew what that looked like, knew what that _felt_ like. If he had any say in the matter, Hiccup wouldn't end up that way.

A strangled yelp sounded, before the stairs began to creak as someone descended. Krogan came halfway down, holding Hiccup by the arm, before dropping the heir the rest of the way. Hiccup landed hard on his side, but didn't make a sound as he tried to regain a steady pace of breathing. By the time both Krogan and Johann had descended the steps, he had made it to a sitting position, his back to Viggo.

Johann's face had turned an ugly shade of purple. Marching over to Hiccup, he bent down and gripped the boy's hair, forcing his head up. "You'll learn quickly not to cross me, boy," he said coldly

Hiccup scowled, wincing in pain as Johann's grip tightened. "Go to Helheim, traitor," he spat wearily.

Johann slapped the boy hard, whipping Hiccup's head to the side. "Do you want Krogan to dislocate your other shoulder as well?" he hissed. "Hmm? Then we could set the one he already broke and re-break them…" He chuckled at the look of fear that crossed Hiccup's face. "Next, it'll be your right leg. Then your left-at least what's left of it. Maybe a few ribs now and then…" He smirked, voice dropping to a vicious whisper. "Have you ever been captured and tortured before, Hiccup?"

Hiccup's gaze hardened. "Yes."

"Who did it?" Johann shot back, intrigued. "Dagur? Alvin?"

The heir had gone pale, his eyes haunted. Viggo cursed inwardly, realizing that Johann was trying to weaken his prisoner by forcing him to recall traumatic experiences.

"D-Dagur…" he whispered. "Didn't get very far…" He flinched as Johann motioned for him to keep talking, then kept talking, voice trembling a bit. "…just slapped me around a bit. He didn't know what he was doing, he stopped when he realized I didn't know…"

Johann tsked under his breath. "Hmm…who else?"

"Why are you making me tell you?"

The man scowled. "I like to get to know the people I kill."

Hiccup went even paler. "Savage."

"Hmm…what did he do?"

"Tried to drown me…" he paused. "Shoved my head under water…repeatedly." His voice still shook, but he seemed to realize that the sooner he got this over with, the sooner Johann might leave him alone.

"Anything else?"

"Poison…" Hiccups words almost sounded questioning, his voice soft and his body shaking. "And he beat me."

"And this was when you were…?" Johann prompted.

"Sixteen."

Viggo closed his eyes briefly. Hiccup had been through more than he had thought.

Johann smirked, clearly enjoying this. "Anyone else?" he practically purred.

Hiccup winced, his eyes flicking over to Viggo in a silent plea. For a long moment, he remained silent, until Johann gave him a shake. "I…"

"It was me," Viggo snapped.

The room fell silent, as Johann grinned gleefully, Krogan gaped at Viggo, and Hiccup lowered his gaze to the floor. Viggo, however, looked straight at Hiccup, heart pounding. Gods, what had he done? He couldn't ignore the memory now; not when it was out in the open.

"Ah," Johann acknowledged. "So it was our friend here, was it?"

Hiccup didn't answer. Finally, after a long moment of silence, Johann stood, pulling Hiccup up and practically dragging him over to the wall next to Viggo. Tossing the heir roughly to the ground, Johann stepped back and folded his arms as Hiccup struggled to sit upright against the wall. Viggo briefly reached out to steady the boy, and was surprised when Hiccup didn't jerk away.

"Well, then," Johann continued. "Viggo, why don't you elaborate?"

Viggo frowned, knowing exactly what Johann wanted and not inclined to give it to him. "What are you talking about, Johann?"

The man smirked. "What exactly did you do to young Hiccup here?"

"I don't have to tell you anything," Viggo snapped.

"I think you'll find that you do," Johann retorted, "Or the boy gets it."

"What makes you think that will convince me?"

The trader chuckled. "Don't be so cold, Viggo…we all know you want to protect him."

"I had him beaten by some of the men," Viggo interrupted, avoiding eye contact with either Hiccup or Johann. "We drugged him a few times with hallucinogenic herbs, and starved him. And… when my men captured him, one of them branded his shoulder… without my knowledge or permission, of course." The last words came in a rush, as Viggo was eager to get this over with.

Hiccup remained silent, staring at the floor. Johann, on the other hand, had an ominous look in his eyes that made Viggo shiver ever so slightly. "Interesting," stated the traitor, eyes resting on his two prisoners. "Hiccup, you seem to have a habit of befriending your enemies."

"We're not exactly friends…" Hiccup mumbled.

"But you're not rivals anymore, are you?" Johann asked.

Hiccup didn't answer. After a long moment, Johann seemed satisfied. Motioning to Krogan, he stepped backwards. "Well, gentlemen, I'll be back to chat in a few hours…Hiccup, prepare yourself. I expect an answer next time I question you."

****line break ****

Their captors left, heading to the upper decks. After a long moment of silence, Viggo glanced over at Hiccup. "I'm sorry."

"For what?" the young man muttered.

"My stubbornness could have gotten you hurt."

Hiccup raised an eyebrow. "Aww, you do care," he said sarcastically, then grew serious. "It's fine. I'm sort of used to it." He scooted over uncomfortably, feeling his bound hands grind against the wall. Pain shot through his shoulders; the right one protesting as the burned skin stretched and stung, and the left one throbbing with a sharp, pulsing ache as the strained muscles and separated joint ground together.

Viggo evidently noticed his grimace, as the man raised an eyebrow. "I heard you yell a few moments ago. What did they do?"

Hiccup sighed before returning his attention to the man. "I think Krogan dislocated my arm…I'm not sure though. It could just be strained."

"Let me see," Viggo ordered. "Turn around."

Hiccup hesitated, then awkwardly turned until his injured shoulder was pointing towards Viggo. Thankfully, Viggo's chains were just long enough to allow him to reach. The man's hands poked and prodded gently, and Hiccup gritted his teeth as his shoulder protested the contact.

Pulling aside the fabric of the Rider's shirt, Viggo grimaced at the scar tissue that marred the pale skin. A long, zigzag mark began just behind the inner edge of Hiccup's shoulder blade, and branched out, disappearing beneath the fabric of his shirt. It looked like it was from…a lightning strike? _What happened to you, Hiccup?_ Viggo wondered, then focused on his task. He felt around the bone and then prodded the muscle, before his fingers hit a spot that made Hiccup gasp in pain.

"Sorry about that," the former Hunter murmured, then adjusted his grip, the chains on his wrists clinking. "I can reset it if you want."

After a moment of hesitation, Hiccup nodded. "Might as well," he replied. "Thank you."

Viggo moved one hand around to grip the front of Hiccup's shoulder, near the collarbone. Placing his other hand around the bony tip of the boy's shoulder, he paused. "This is going to hurt."

"I know," Hiccup replied. "Just do it."

Viggo took a deep breath, and pushed.

"Aaagh!"

 ******line break******

 **So there you go. A healthy dose of whump, angst, and...*squints* is that some bonding I see?**

 **Elena out!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Heyyyyyy guys! I hope all of you had a great week! Happy Fourth of July to those who live in the U.S.!**

 **I'm in a bit of a rush today, so shout-outs will have to wait... also I won't update next week as I'll be gone at summer camp. But for now, here's your chappie!**

Chapter Six

Hiccup's cry of pain died away quickly, leaving the air thick with tension as both prisoners listened. Thankfully, no one seemed to have heard the sound, as no footsteps pounded across the deck above and no angry ex-traders came to deal out swift punishment. After a long, painful moment of complete silence, Hiccup exhaled heavily and slumped forward, and Viggo let out a soft sigh of relief.

"Thanks," Hiccup murmured, moving back to rest against the wall.

"You probably pulled a few muscles as well, so it'll still hurt for a while," Viggo informed. "But your arm's back in the socket, at least."

"I just hope it stays that way," the heir muttered dryly.

"You know, Hiccup," Viggo said hesitantly, "You're still only eighteen. No one would blame you if…"

"I'm not working for Johann," Hiccup interrupted. "I can't give him answers, either. If I slip an inch, I'll bring down all of Berk with me." He paused, fear showing in his eyes for a split second. "…And besides, I don't know if I could handle the guilt of selling them out. So it's partly selfish, I guess."

"I admire your courage, and you are not alone in this fight." Viggo spoke without thinking, and realized that comment had been uncharacteristically altruistic. Maybe the boy wouldn't notice.

"What do you mean?"

"Your friends are standing behind you," Viggo replied. "You have people who will help you when you need it."

Hiccup paused in consideration, eyeing Viggo suspiciously for a moment before smirking. "You're a pretty terrible liar."

"I'm sure I have no idea what you mean."

"Huh." Hiccup shrugged. "Sure…"

They fell into a comfortable silence, broken only by the sound of Hiccup's soft breathing as the exhausted heir began to nod off.

Viggo found himself silently wishing the boy a peaceful sleep. Surprised at himself, he shrugged. Thor knew Hiccup would need his rest.

Neither of them would get much in the days to come.

line break*

Johann heard the door open and close, but didn't look up as Krogan entered. The tall foreigner always strode around like he owned the place- which, as he frequently reminded Johann, might one day be true. Krogan's employer, a mysterious yet increasingly infamous Persian buyer named Drago Bludvist, was growing steadily more powerful as he continued to collect more and more dragons. It wasn't hard to grasp the man's goals- what else would he do with so many dragons but build an army? Johann hadn't met the man yet, but he sounded ruthless.

The ex-trader liked ruthlessness in a business partner.

"I assume you came in here for a good reason, and not just to stand there and watch me work." Johann still didn't look up from his desk, where he was studying a damage report from one of the other ships.

"When are we going to question the boy?" Krogan demanded.

Finally resigning himself to the knowledge that he would actually have to acknowledge the man's existence, Johann looked up. "You seem rather eager," he commented dryly.

Krogan scowled. "Do you realize how long I've waited for this?" he hissed. "When Viggo set a bounty on Hiccup's head, I was the one who captured him. And do you know what he did? Not only did he lose me my gold, but he nearly killed me." His eyes darkened and one hand wrapped around the hilt of his sword. "Every time that boy has gotten in my way, I've sworn to get my revenge. And now that I have him in my grasp…" The foreigner's eyes glittered ominously.

"Now, Krogan," Johann began. "Let us not forget that we have plenty of time. The Riders cannot spare anyone to rescue Hiccup. They'll be busy for weeks cleaning up the Edge, helping their allies, and making sure their territory is clear. By the time they can send someone to find Hiccup, we'll be long gone, far beyond the borders of the archipelago-perhaps in Rome, or the islands of the Anglo-Saxons." He paused, gathering his thoughts. "We shouldn't rush anything. With a prisoner like Hiccup, you have to give it time. The idea must be planted in his mind that he is beyond reach, that his friends are not coming for him."

"Sure." Krogan sounded doubtful. "But how long will that take?"

"A week will plant the seed in his mind." Johann paused. "But I share your desire to make him suffer. And that is why we'll be going down to speak with young Hiccup in an hour."

line break*

 _He couldn't breathe._

 _The air was hot and wet and stale, made less of oxygen than of his own recycled breath. He saw nothing but blackness, the thick sack over his head blocking out the light. His own panicked breathing drowned all other sound, until a voice spoke beside him._

 _"We're here." Ryker's words were spoken gruffly, and the man's hand tightened on Hiccup's shoulder. "This is gonna be fun."_

 _A door opened, and Hiccup was forced to enter the room. His bound hands, still tied tightly against his body, curled into fists as he tried to stop them from shaking. He had a vague idea of what was coming- after all, why else would Ryker bring him to Viggo instead of killing him on Sleipnir? They wanted to interrogate him._

 _"Ah, Hiccup." Viggo sounded just as cold and calculating as ever. "I've been expecting you."_

line break*

Hiccup woke with a sharp cry, startling Viggo. The ex-hunter glanced over in concern, watching silently as the boy calmed down. "Nightmares?"

Hiccup stiffened and lowered his eyes to the floor. "It's nothing," he mumbled. "Sorry." He looked around the room briefly, as though he had to re-register his surroundings. "How long was I asleep?"

"About an hour," Viggo replied.

"Johann will be back down here soon," said Hiccup, sounding weary, though obviously grateful for the chance to change the subject. "What if he finds out you set my arm?"

"Well, he won't be pleased," Viggo answered. "But what's done is done. What can he do?"

"You know, that sentence makes you sound a lot more reckless than the Viggo I know," Hiccup mused.

"I suppose I've spent more time talking to you than I thought."

The boy made a face, hesitating. "Did you just…" he began, then paused, shaking his head in disbelief. "…did you just make a joke?"

"No."

Hiccup frowned doubtfully. "Huh. If you say so."

The door opened suddenly, and the casual conversation died along with the smirk on Viggo's face. Johann entered, followed by Krogan, and both men looked to be in a good mood. That couldn't be good…

"Hello gentlemen," Johann drawled. "Ready to have that chat we talked about?"

Hiccup scowled. "Gods, Johann. Even now, you're still showing up at the worst times to annoy people and make my life difficult. Nice to know some things never change."

"And you're still a smart mouthed brat who doesn't know when to shut up."

Well, he's also a strategical genius who's defeated you more than once, Viggo thought, but said nothing.

"I've found that shutting up isn't very helpful when you're trying to diplomatically achieve peace for an entire archipelago," Hiccup replied calmly.

"If peace is your goal, then why do you refuse to surrender?" Johann demanded. "If you would only consent to join us, the fighting would end, and your friends would no longer be in danger every step of the way."

"That was a low blow," Hiccup muttered. "And besides, if I joined you, not only would thousands of dragons be killed or enslaved, but my friends and all of our allies would be forced into hiding in an attempt to avoid punishment for war crimes."

"But you would be in a position where you could help them," the trader shot back. "Be reasonable, Hiccup. It's for the best."

"I'm not joining you, Johann." Hiccup's voice was steady. "Now let me go. It's pointless to keep me here."

"Is it?" Johann asked darkly. "Hiccup, you and I both know you're not the chief of Berk. Do you really have authority over them?"

Hiccup froze. Recovering quickly, he glared at Johann. "I'm the acting chief." Viggo frowned, this bit of information new to him.

"Only acting, you say?" Johann mused. "Your father is on his deathbed, isn't he?"

Hiccup's eyes narrowed. "No. My father isn't dying." He shot a glare at Krogan. "No thanks to you."

Johann shrugged. "Then, as only the acting chief, you can't keep Berk from surrendering for long. If I bring you to your island and demand a ransom, what will they do? Will they listen to your orders and refuse, or will they do what they know Stoick would do and cooperate?"

Hiccup paled. "Don't use me against them, they'll never listen to you."

"Are you sure?" asked the traitor. "If I brought you to Berk, dragged you to the village square, and tortured you in front of all of your people, wouldn't they submit? Imagine it- the great Stoick the Vast, the fierce shield maiden Astrid; every one of your Riders racing to do my bidding just to save the miserable, pathetic life of their chief to be, who couldn't even save them from himself. And then, with Berk in my grasp, I could force you to help us hunt dragons simply by threatening your friends."

Hiccup swallowed and let out a breath. "Johann, you of all people should know better than to make threats you can't keep."

Johann took a step towards the heir and knelt down, his eyes inches from Hiccup's. "If you won't agree to cooperate, I will force you to. You may try to fight, to resist; but I swear to Odin that I will get what I want. If you won't bend, you will break."

"I won't help you," Hiccup said coldly. "You can't force me to."

Johann was silent for a long moment, before he turned and glanced at his comrade. "He's all yours, Krogan." The ex-trader informed.

 _Oh Odin,_ Viggo thought.

line break*

 **Peace out!**

 **-Elena**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hello, amigos. I'm back! I know y'all have waited awhile for this chapter, so I'll skip shout-outs and do those next time. As for this chapter...*rubs hands together* prepare for a buttload of angst and some tragic backstory.**

Chapter Seven

Viggo watched in horror as Hiccup was pulled up out of the bucket of salt water for the third time. Coughing and spluttering, the boy struggled to escape from his captors' hold, but the two guards gripping his arms held tight.

Hiccup was kneeling at a low table, across from Krogan. The tall man was gripping Hiccup's hair with one hand, holding the soaked heir's head out of the water. "What's your answer now?"

"G-go to Hel," Hiccup stuttered.

Immediately Krogan stood and forced Hiccup's head down into the water again. The boy tried to fight back, but Krogan easily overpowered him. For a few seconds, the heir's body merely strained against the hold of the three men, but then, evidently, his air began to run out. A violent tremor ran through his body, before the thrashing began. He writhed in his captors' grasp, kicking and flailing, before all the strength seemed to leave him, and he went limp.

Krogan waited a second longer before pulling Hiccup's head up, but when the boy's face was above the water, there was not the usual coughing fit. No- this time he was perfectly still, his wet, glistening skin as pale as death and his auburn hair plastered pathetically over his face. For a long, tense moment, all was silent-then Hiccup gasped, deep and almost painful-sounding. A second later, he burst into a fit of coughing.

Viggo let out a sigh, relieved. For a moment there, he really had thought Hiccup was… dead? Unconscious? He wasn't sure. But for a split second, he had felt his heart skip a beat and a chill run up his spine, and his fists had clenched in something between fear, rage, and pain. The ex-Dragon Hunter had to fight not to speak; he didn't trust himself not to get Hiccup in more trouble.

Johann walked over from his place leaning against the wall, kneeling down beside Hiccup. Gripping the boy's shoulder, he pulled Hiccup onto his side, allowing the heir to cough up the water he had inhaled. "Krogan, please try to avoid killing the boy. We need him alive."

Krogan scowled but said nothing, watching coldly as Hiccup recovered.

The heir rolled onto his back, exhausted. After a few moments, he stirred and moved to a half-sitting position, elbow propped against the ground. Lifting a trembling hand to wipe the water from his eyes, he glared at Krogan, then spat at the man.

Viggo felt his heart sink. _Hiccup… you're an idiot._ Why was the boy deliberately antagonizing his captor?

Krogan growled low in his throat and raised a fist. "You'll regret that—"

But he stopped, as he saw Hiccup cringe back in anticipation of the blow. "Wait. No…you know what, Hiccup?" he mused. "I'm going to make you wait. You don't get the privilege of having it over and done so quickly. And what's more, I'm going to tell you exactly what I plan to do to you." He knelt down in front of the heir, and seized Hiccup by the hair, lifting his head. "You know more about dragons than any living man, correct?" Without waiting for an answer he continued. "Then you know what happens when human skin…" he traced a long finger across the pale skin of Hiccup's throat, "…comes in contact with the venom of a Changewing dragon."

Hiccup's eyes widened, but he said nothing. Of course, he didn't need to. He was clearly afraid.

Krogan smiled cruelly. "You're not very good at hiding your fear."

Hiccup swallowed hard. "Maybe not, but you just wait…"

He was rewarded with a harsh slap to the face, then Krogan's knee rose to meet his stomach. Krogan stood, and threw Hiccup harshly to the ground, where the boy lay gasping and clutching his abdomen. "Tomorrow evening," the foreigner said shortly. I'll see you then. Rest your voice, Hiccup- I want to hear your screams."

And then he was gone, followed by Johann and the guards.

"You idiot."

"What?" Hiccup asked incredulously, his voice hoarse.

"Why did you have to antagonize him?" Viggo demanded. "Have you no sense of self-preservation?"

Hiccup rolled to a kneeling position and grinned weakly. "Not really, I guess."

"Some things never change." Viggo leaned forward.

"Are you alright?"

"Been better." Hiccup started to push himself up so he could make it back to the wall, but his face went white and he crumpled back to the ground, gripping his ribs. "Much better," he gasped.

"What is it?" Viggo asked, concerned.

"I think I swallowed a little too much salt water," the heir replied, then groaned. "Oh gods- I may have broken a rib."

Viggo wouldn't have been surprised. Krogan was immensely strong and he had used all his strength to slam his knee into Hiccup's stomach. "You know, if you would stop talking back, you'd get hurt a lot less often."

"Don't lecture me. I've lasted this long." Hiccup tried to move to the wall again, but before he made it two feet he had to stop again, panting.

Viggo glances doubtfully at the boy. "You do realize that you literally can't move without pain? That you only have one leg and could have the other broken any day ?"

"Okay, so maybe sassing Krogan isn't a wise move if I want to keep my limbs." Hiccup replied. "I mean, I technically lost my leg because I taunted the biggest dragon in the archipelago, so…" He fell silent, staring wistfully at his stump.

Then he shook himself out of his daze and prepared to crawl to the wall. Grunting slightly as his abdominal muscles constricted, Hiccup wrapped an arm around himself and used the other to drag himself to his destination. Finally he reached the wall, and relaxed against it. Only inches from where Viggo was bound, Hiccup raised a hand to run through his auburn hair.

Watching the exhausted teen, Viggo assesses the boy's injuries. There was the burn on his right arm (which had to be aching dreadfully, but Hiccup didn't say anything), his healing opposite shoulder, his ribs, and a few minor cuts and bruises. His shirt, still sliced open down the middle, might as well have been missing entirely for the little protection it offered. But despite his clear discomfort, he settled back, wrapped his arms around his knees, and began to nod off.

As he sat and kept watch over the sleeping heir, Viggo sighed and became lost in his own troubled thoughts. He had never been a father; never even considered it. But if things had been different- if he hadn't been the enemy of Berk for two years, if he hadn't been a Dragon Hunter in the first place, if he had become allies with Berk when he first heard of the boy who killed the Red Death-then he might have believed that this protective urge he had was almost parental. Because, if any of those things had happened differently, there would not be a rivalry between them. There would be no silent, subtle hostility or mistrust. Viggo wouldn't be feeling the overwhelming guilt that he currently was going through.

If he could do it all over again, he would have started at the time he had been fifteen years old, nothing but a scrawny yet ambitious teenager striving to be accepted in the ranks of his tribe. He would have done the thing that Hiccup had managed to do, yet Viggo himself had never been able to—stand up for what he believed in, no matter what anyone, even his own family, said. He would have insisted that their long-standing practice of hunting dragons was wrong, and that it was time for a change. He would have helped save the baby Skrill that had crashed in the forest right in front of him, rather than abandoning it in the woods to die. He would have protested when his father sent Ryker and his men to hunt the little storm dragon down. He would have accepted that enough was enough when his father stormed into his room and gathered up every single book on dragons, every one of Viggo's carefully sketched drawings or pages of research notes, and burned them. He would have rebelled when his father threatened to disown him, and fought back when Ryker nearly beat him to death.

He would have proved to his tribe that the dragons were more than prey meant to be hunted for sport. And if that wouldn't work, he would have run; far away until he reached the opposite side of the archipelago.

But he couldn't go back, and he couldn't fix his mistakes. He had submitted to his father's wishes and had taken up the traditional Grimborn occupation of dragon hunting. He had hidden behind the label of "businessman" in an attempt to placate his guilty conscience- after all, who could blame him if he was helping provide for his tribe? And eventually he realized that he was good at his job. Not only did he enjoy the thrill of the hunt, but he was a natural strategist; his early years playing Maces and Talons with his grandfather ensured that.

Viggo wasn't sure exactly when it was that he completely abandoned his childhood principles. Maybe it was when his father informed him that he had earned a place in the Grimborn line, and would be the heir to the chiefdom. Or perhaps it happened when his father died, and Ryker found out that his birthright was being given to his younger brother. That day, Viggo had been torn; he mourned his father despite the man's cold nature, but craved the power that came with the chiefdom. A tiny part of him also desired to make Ryker pay for his cruelty. So, when Ryker protested the change in command, Viggo challenged him to fight for the throne. The only catch was, the challenge had two parts. One was a battle of wits; the other was one of physical strength…

Viggo shook his head to clear his thoughts. He didn't want to think about that incident. Remembering it always angered him, and made him recall the hatred he had once felt towards his brother… the hatred that had only dissipated when Ryker had been killed by the Submaripper. After that, all Viggo could feel towards his elder sibling was regret and guilt.

Hiccup stirred, and Viggo thanked the gods for the distraction. He glanced down at the boy, and wasn't surprised to see the boy still asleep. However, Hiccup's eyelids twitched and he squirmed in his sleep as though he was trying to get away from some unseen enemy. Nightmares. Concerned, Viggo reached out to shake the boy awake, but hesitated. His face probably wasn't the first thing Hiccup should see upon waking from a bad dream…

The heir flinched violently, and let out a low moan. "No…please," he murmured, so softly that Viggo had to strain to hear. "Gods…no." The ex-hunter frowned but still gave pause, not sure if he should wake the boy.

He froze when Hiccup said his name. "Wait—Viggo, don't…" the young man curled in on himself, gasping as though he had been hit in the stomach. "Stop—no, I won't tell you!"

Viggo felt his breath hitch. He had heard these words before, had watched as Hiccup had begged and pleaded for the beatings to cease. Ryker has glanced sidelong at his younger brother, questioning, but Viggo had merely given an almost imperceptible nod. And the brutal punishment had continued.

Suddenly, Viggo knew what he had to do. Reaching out, he touched the shoulder of the sleeping heir, and shook gently. "Hiccup," he said softly.

A fist flew in his direction, and on impulse, he dodged out of the way and grabbed the wrist attached to the flailing arm. Hiccup was in the stage of waking where he didn't know the difference between the nightmare and real life— if Viggo didn't do something, the boy could hurt himself. So, chains rattling, the ex-Hunter gripped both Hiccup's wrists. "Hiccup, wake up!" he hissed, giving the heir a shake.

Hiccup thrashed in Viggo's hold, moaning and crying out; sometimes simply wordless cries of pain, other times clear protests or pleas.

Finally Viggo sighed, and slapped Hiccup across the face.

All went silent as Hiccup's eyes flew open. He blinked uncomprehendingly up at Viggo, before his eyes took on a cold, cautious light Viggo had never seen in them before. The heir grew still, then moistened his lips and spoke. "Let go of me."

line break*

 **So... hope y'all liked that... knowing you guys, you probably loved it. You're a pretty sadistic bunch...*coughcough* How did you guys like that lovely dose of angst? How about the Viggo backstory?**

 **Peace out,**

 **Elena (TheHyperactiveFangirl14)**


	8. Chapter 8

**YO WASSUP MY PEOPLES! I'm back!**

 **Shoutouts! For chapters six and seven!**

 **Chapter SIX——**

 **Massive HTTYD Fan: Yeah, there's no way Viggo's completely evil after Triple Cross... thanks, I'm glad you like!**

 **RainDragon28: Sorry about the wait...and I will! Thanks!**

 **dabzzygirl: Hehe...I love cliffhangers.**

 **ThePhoenixGhirl: Hmm...why must I torture you? I dunno. It's fun I guess.**

 **Pokey314: Have an update! You have a great week too, thanks!**

 **JChttyd: Hmmmm...What will happen to Hiccup? I'm glad you like my story!**

 **r-a-e121: Aww, thanks! I love writing Viggo. And yes, the wait will hopefully be worth it. And maybe I will...**

 **ScribblesTheVixen: Thanks!**

 **Pluviophile15: I'm glad you like it!**

 **The Dreaming Dragon: Ah Yes, cliffhangers...*strokes evil pet cat and chuckles***

 **Guest: I'm glad!**

 **Sophhascoconuts: Hehehe...sorry... Yes, Viggo and Hiccup are bonding a bit quickly... I wonder if that will change...**

 **Helen: Thanks, I'm glad you like my stories! As for whether Pursuit and Wanted take place in the same storyline, I'm not sure. I think something very similar happened, but Hiccup's torture at Viggo's hands wasn't nearly as severe, and Ryker did most of it.**

 **NightBlue: I'm glad you like it, and that it makes sense!**

 **Chapter SEVEN——**

 **JChttyd: It may be another chapter before I revisit the Riders, but I appreciate your questions! It's nice to know that people are paying attention. Thanks for your patience!**

 **Pokey314: I love Viggo's backstory! My idea is that Viggo represents what Hiccup could have become if he hadn't protected Toothless. Likewise, Hiccup is the image of what Viggo could have been, but he missed the chance. And I'm glad you like the fatherly bits!**

 **Guest: Thank you! I'm glad you like the backstory. And I'm so excited to find another Christian on here!**

 **dabzzygirl: Yep, Viggo is supposed to represent what Hiccup could have become if he hadn't helped Toothless.**

 **Pluviophile15: Yes, awkward...**

 **ScribblesTheVixen: I will include more about Maces and Talons, just not in this chapter...I'll revisit the gang in a few chapters too. And I estimate there should be around 20-30 chapters. I plan to drag out the angst!**

 **Dabzzygirl: Good idea...I was honestly thinking of doing that anyway, but I'm glad someone else likes the idea!**

 **Faceless Dude: (I love your username) Thanks, I'm glad you like Viggo's story! Yes, Hiccup will have some trouble trusting Viggo, but that doesn't change the fact that Viggo's acting ver...*ahem* fatherly... And it's okay, many** **native English speakers on this site make more mistakes than you.**

 **Romantica123: I'm glad you like it!**

 **ON WITH THE STORY!!!!!**

Chapter Eight

Viggo hesitated, and for a split second, he considered complying with Hiccup's demand. Eventually, though, he thought better of it. A fraction of his mind tried to persuade him that he should let the boy go, but then he saw Hiccup's eyes. There was a sort of wild, almost feral gleam in his green irises that caught Viggo off guard; recoiling briefly, he loosened his grip.

The next instant, Hiccup had ripped his wrists from Viggo's grip, and lunged for the man. Not expecting the sudden attack, Viggo was easily knocked to the ground as Hiccup's slim figure barreled into him. He landed flat on his back; dazed, he lay there for a moment, before beginning to push himself back to his feet. _I have to stop him, before he hurts himself._

But Hiccup clearly had no intention of being stopped. He shoved Viggo's legs out from under him before the ex-hunter could even sit up, then planted a knee in the center of the man's chest.

"Don't touch me," he spat. "Haven't you done enough?"

Confused, Viggo frowns. "Hiccup, what are you talking about?" He asked, then saw those eyes again—the pure rage that burned in them. The boy looked... well, crazy. Hiccup didn't know what was going on, as his mind hadn't fully emerged from sleep. And Viggo knew that Hiccup was dangerous when he was like this. I've got to get him to calm down...

He saw Hiccup's fist flying towards him, and turned his head just in time to earn a bruised jaw instead of a broken nose. As the heir tried to hit him again, Viggo grabbed the hand and jabbed his knuckles up into the front of Hiccup's opposite shoulder, numbing the arm. Shoving the boy off him, Viggo scrambled to his knees. "Hiccup, please- listen to me!"

The boy made it up into a kneeling position, holding his shoulder and glaring at the former Hunter. Then Viggo realized- he had hit Hiccup in his bad shoulder, the one he had dislocated. That had to have hurt. Come to think of it, the Dragon Rider was injured in several places- what if, by the simple act of defending himself, Viggo inadvertently hurt the boy further? "Hiccup, stop. You're going to hurt yourself-"

But Hiccup ignored him, and lunging forward, the heir swung a fist at Viggo's face. Dodging the blow, he saw Hiccup stumble forward, no longer close enough to the wall to keep himself from falling.

Viggo reached out, hoping to break the boy's fall. However, his chains kept him just out of reach, and he winced as he watched Hiccup hit the ground.

The heir rose to his knees, and aimed a vicious glare in Viggo's direction. "I told you to stay away from me!" He launched himself forward on one leg, and drew his fist back once more. As Viggo ducked, he lost his balance and fell awkwardly against the wall, providing the opening that Hiccup needed. Lunging towards the older man, Hiccup wrapped his hands around the man's neck. Instantly, Viggo reached up to pull the heir's hands away, but his struggling did no good. Hiccup was evidently a lot stronger than he looked. Viggo experimentally tried to suck in a breath, but it was no use. Hiccup wouldn't budge.

And then Viggo stopped fighting- not because of exhaustion, or from lack of air. _What have I done? I may have just ruined any chance we have of getting out of this place._ But what right had he to freedom, after all? After everything he had done, he deserved nothing more than to pay for his crimes. And that payment would be far more than just a lifetime in Outcast prison.

 _How fitting, that Hiccup will be my end. I suppose I couldn't be so lucky as to escape death by his hand twice._

He remembered the sight of the Dragon Eye hurtling through the air, glinting in the light of the molten rock of the volcano; he could still hear his own yell of panic as he raced to catch the precious item. Hiccup's own shouts echoed in his ears as the heir cried out- no, stop, he was going to...

And then he fell, shouting Hiccup's name- whether as a plea for help or as a promise of revenge, he was never sure.

He had come out of that encounter with not only vicious scars, but a promise to himself and to Hiccup that he would change his ways. After twenty years traveling the downhill path his father had set him on, he would finally turn around and abandon it.

And so, ignoring the nagging thought that the ghosts of his father and brother were haunting him for his choice, he went into hiding. Those two months of complete isolation had been quite educational. With only his own guilty thoughts for company, he had nearly lost his mind at one point, when he could have sworn he heard Ryker's voice telling him you don't deserve to live, that, after everything you've done, how could you hope to redeem yourself?

And now, for the first time in the thirty-five years of his life, Viggo admitted that his brother had been right. He didn't deserve redemption. He wasn't entitled to even hope for Hiccup's forgiveness, or an alliance with Berk.

His hands went slack over Hiccup's, and he closed his eyes as the unbearable pressure around his neck grew tighter still. _Goodbye, Hiccup._

line break*

Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, heir and pride of Berk and leader of the Dragon Riders, was at his lowest point yet.

Worse still, he didn't know how he had gotten there.

By the time he knew what he was doing, he had already succeeded in taking a certain ex-dragon hunter down, and had his hands wrapped tightly around Viggo's neck. He was partially on top of the man, his knee (the right one, of course) digging into Viggo's chest. As soon as he realized what was going on, however, he jerked his hands away and dragged himself off the man, appalled. _What in Helheim...?_ What was he doing?

Viggo sucked in a breath, and started coughing, rolling over on his side. Hiccup only barely noticed, though. He tried to remember how he had gotten here, but he drew a blank except for some vague memories of Viggo grabbing his wrists and asking him what was the matter. Before that, the last thing he remembered was falling asleep after Krogan's interrogation...

"Oh gods..." He whispered, tugging on his hair with both hands. "What have I done..." His mind felt clouded, as though he had just been hanging upside down for too long. A dull, throbbing pain pounded at the base of his skull.

"Hiccup?" asked Viggo, his voice hoarse.

Hiccup didn't answer, trying to shut out the taunting voice inside his head- _you could have killed him. What kind of a leader murders people in cold blood? How could you lose control like that?_

"Hiccup." Now Viggo's voice sounded right next to him, and he jumped, startled. He glanced nervously at the man, not sure of what Viggo would do. After all, he had nearly been killed.

A hand rested lightly on his shoulder, and he flinched away sharply. ...could've killed him. A moment later, however, the hand returned to gently grip his shoulder. Hiccup tensed, but didn't pull away. It wasn't like it would do much good.

"Are you alright?"

Hiccup didn't reply. Why was Viggo asking about his wellbeing when the man himself was the one who had nearly died?

"W-what happened?" He was surprised by the sound of his own voice; he sounded younger than usual, and scared.

"You don't remember?" Viggo asked.

"I woke up and I was..." he swallowed. "I was choking you."

Viggo seemed to hesitate, not speaking for a long time. Then he sighed. "You had a nightmare. I tried to wake you...

Viggo seemed to hesitate, not speaking for a long time. Then he sighed. "You had a nightmare. I tried to wake you up, but you wouldn't wake up until I hit you."

Hiccup suddenly noticed a stinging pain in his cheek. Reaching up, he gently prodded the swollen spot. "Ouch."

"Sorry about that," Viggo said awkwardly. "I had to wake you up somehow. Apparently it just made things worse."

"Is that why I attacked you?" Hiccup replied.

"You didn't know what was going on," Viggo consoled. "You panicked- and I don't blame you, if you were dreaming about what I think you were…"

And then Hiccup remembered, and he wasn't sure who he hated more- himself or Viggo. _I could have killed him…but he nearly killed me that time._

"Are you alright?"

"Fine." The words were spoken in a brief, final manner, as though Hiccup was ending all conversation. But Viggo wouldn't have any of that.

"No, you're not." The words were spoken firmly, but Viggo doubted his own resolve. What reason would Hiccup have to trust him or even listen? Especially considering the things he had said in his sleep. "You had a nightmare. You called my name."

"Did I?" Hiccup feigned confusion as he settled back against the wall, but Viggo saw straight through it.

"Yes, you did." He paused. "It wasn't just a dream, was it? It was a memory."

Hiccup scowled. "Do we have to talk about this?" he muttered.

Viggo hesitated, then nodded. "Yes, we do. Hiccup, there's a wall between us- one that must fall if we are going to work together."

"We're working together?"

"You do want to escape from this boat, correct?" Viggo asked dryly.

Hiccup remained silent.

"If we want to get out of here, we need to communicate. And this is no way to start." Viggo hesitated. "I know you dreamed about something I did to you."

"Not you. Ryker."

Viggo winced at the mention of his brother's name. "Yes, but I gave the orders. I was driven by a lust for revenge, Hiccup, one that only dissipated when my brother was killed. At that point I realized the mistake I had made, and saw the level I had descended to. That is the one and only reason I'm still here." He paused briefly before continuing, "However, whatever my reasons at the time, I had no excuse. I'm sorry."

Hiccup looked incredulous. "You're _sorry_?" he demanded angrily, clenching his fists. "Do you even know what you and your faithful little followers _did to me?!"_

Viggo grimaced. Gods, now he had made the boy angry. This conversation had seemed a lot easier when he was rehearsing it in his head.

"Yes, Hiccup, I do." He forced himself to look the boy in the eyes. "I know they—"

"You weren't there the whole time."

Viggo frowned. "What do you mean…?"

"Did you ever wonder what happened when you left the room?" Hiccup asked, a tremor in his voice. "When you had your back turned?" Without waiting for a response, he continued. "Ryker always said your interrogation tactics were pointless and would never work on me. So, since he wanted my cooperation as much as you did, he tried his own methods behind your back."

Viggo scowled. That overconfident fool… "Oh, mother of Odin…" he groaned, and massaged his temples. "I…never knew. If I had, I would have stopped it, even then. I hated Ryker's style of interrogation. Too crude for my tastes. Of course, I eventually learned that just because you're not making someone bleed, doesn't mean you're not killing them."

Hiccup was silent. "You know what scared me the most then? The possibility that Ryker would succeed, and I would break. I was scared of the possibility of becoming my worst." He hesitated. "And now it's happened. I've finally given in- because of a memory, and nothing more." A slightly psychotic light entered his eyes as he snorted dryly. "A moment longer, and I would be a murderer. The very thing I've run from for so many years…"

Viggo was unnerved by the look on Hiccup's face and by his words. "Hiccup…listen to me. A moment ago, when you grabbed me by the neck, I only had one thought. That I deserved to die."

Hiccup gave him a confused look. "Why?"

"It's been twenty years since I became a Dragon Hunter," Viggo said quietly. "In that time I've committed more atrocities than you can imagine. I've lied, and cheated, and stolen, and killed. I have made countless dragons and people suffer, and all because of one man." A note of bitterness entered his voice. "My father. He and my brother were both hunters and proud of it. I, however, was much like you at that point- I was the runt of the tribe, and because I could never have the physical prowess that my brother had achieved, I turned to my mind in hopes that I could be recognized by my father as being equal to Ryker. By the time I was fifteen, I was an expert not only in the areas of fighting, but in language, medicine, physics… During that time I also began to realize something. If the boy who wasn't likely to survive the night could become physically capable and mentally superior, then could a war that had gone on for six hundred years be ended? The possibilities were endless. What if I could find a way to end the bloodshed?"

A shaky breath escaped him. "One day I stumbled upon an injured dragon in the forest… I immediately knew that it was a Skrill. I was terrified and wanted to run, but then something stopped me. It cried out, just loudly enough for me to hear, and I turned back. That day, I just couldn't bring myself to tell my father what I had seen. Every time I wanted to do so, I just couldn't. Eventually, though, he found out; I don't know how. Ryker led a hunting party to kill the dragon, and I didn't have the courage to say a word."

Viggo met Hiccup's eyes. "You did. I know it was you who changed things in Berk. You had the courage to stand up for what you knew to be right. And because of that you brought peace to the entire archipelago. You have become what I could never be. I let one failure convince me that I had no choice but to become my father, and I did. I became just as cruel and ruthless as he was."

"What's the point?" Hiccup asked.

"You're not a bad person. You've been through more than any person should be able to withstand. Yes, you could've killed me. But I also could have done the same to you if I had fought back. What's more, if you think you've broken already, then you're letting yourself down, not to mention your friends. So get up, and keep going, for Thor's sake."

Hiccup hesitated. "…okay."

line break*

 **Hehehehe...you like?**

 **Peace out,**

 **Elena**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hey guys! I am so sorry y'all had to wait this long for a chapter. I promise, I didn't mean to. Also I started college, had a birthday and got my drivers license...after finishing weeks of drivers ed of course. But here I am!**

 **You guys are gonna love this chapter. Here comes the dreaded (and anticipated) scene...**

 **Shout-outs: I just wanna get this published, so for shoutouts, just go to the forum on my page and I'll write long post with all the acknowledgements for this chapter.**

 **Now... on with the story!**

Chapter Nine

"When are they going to _stop_?!" Astrid exclaimed angrily.

It had been almost two days since they had left Hiccup on Johann's ship. Of course, it had seemed much longer to Dagur, Astrid and the others. The heir was undoubtedly being hurt further by Johann and Krogan, and all of them knew it. However, the feeling of utter helplessness that accompanied the knowledge that Hiccup was being tortured was what hurt the most. When they had left Johann's fleet, they had been forced to fly out of sight of the ship and meet up with the others. Of course, Stormfly's nose could still track the ship, but they had already been at it for over a day- they were exhausted.

"We can't keep on like this," protested Snotlout. "We need food, and Hookfang's exhausted."

"We have to keep going, otherwise we'll lose them," Dagur replied coldly.

"What can we do?" Fishlegs pointed out. "If we do go after him, who's to say Johann won't do the same thing again and use him against us?"

Dagur was silent, not sure what to say. It was true; Johann would jump at the chance to use Hiccup's safety as leverage against the Riders. If they were seen anywhere nearby, Johann would just kill Hiccup, for all they knew. They couldn't risk it…but they had to.

"We keep going until the Hunters stop," said Dagur firmly. "And no sooner."

Above them, storm clouds gathered ominously, and a low rumble of thunder echoed off the water below.

line break*

"Rise and shine, boys!" greeted Johann brightly, slamming the cell door open with a clang and stepping inside, boots thudding hollowly against the wood floor. "Time to get up." Harsh, white sunlight filtered in through the tiny window, the only light available to them as last night's torch had long since been reduced to smoking embers.

Roused from the comfort of his relatively peaceful sleep, Viggo lifted his head from his spot on the wall, looking around briefly and noticing Hiccup, who was huddled against the wall to his right. The only sign that the boy was even alive was a slight rise and fall of his shoulders, and one lock of auburn hair which hung across his face fluttering periodically as he breathed. Viggo wasn't surprised to see that the heir sported a nasty bruise on his right cheekbone, evidence of the incident the night before.

Speaking of last night... he could feel a dull, throbbing pain in his throat and a metallic dryness that didn't seem to go away no matter how many times he swallowed his own saliva. He would need water if he planned to be talking loudly any time soon. In addition, his jaw and cheek throbbed where Hiccup had punched him. Gods above, how was the boy that strong?

Nudging Hiccup awake with a gentle elbow to the side, Viggo watched Krogan enter the room, holding a rather suspicious looking vial in one hand and a coil of rope in the other. Johann, in the meantime, leaned against the doorframe and looked on as his subordinate moved about the cell.

Hiccup looked up, blinking groggily. "What…?" he muttered, before he noticed Johann and Krogan. Paling slightly, he seemed to shrink in on himself, wrapping an arm around his ribs in a vain attempt to protect himself.

Krogan set the vial down on the table as he passed, then made his way towards the two prisoners, a smirk on his dark features. "I've been looking forward to this all night long," he murmured, crouching down so that he was at Hiccup's eye level. "You're lucky Johann wants to keep you alive for now, little Rider. Nothing would satisfy me more than to make you scream for your daddy." He paused. "But before that, I need something from you."

Hiccup glared at the man before him, biting his lower lip and obviously trying not to flinch. "I won't help you."

In the dim light, Krogan's eyes glittered menacingly. Reaching out, the man grabbed Hiccup by the upper arm and dragged him to his feet before the heir even knew what was happening. With a startled cry, Hiccup threw all his weight towards the wall, pulling himself free from Krogan, who was completely caught off guard by the sudden escape attempt. The man growled angrily and lashed out with a fist, nearly catching Hiccup's jaw. The heir was already falling because of his missing prosthetic, and he hit the ground on his stomach with a sickening thud that made Viggo wince. Chained to the wall as he was, he was helpless to stop anything that was happening.

Krogan was furious. Reaching down, he snatched Hiccup's arm in an iron grip from behind and pulled him to his feet. After a brief moment of Hiccup flailing his arms wildly, Krogan managed to grab the boy's other arm as well. With a grunt, the tall foreigner lunged forward and slammed his captive into the wall. Hiccup's breath left him with an audible whoosh, and Viggo could have sworn he heard something crack. A split second after his initial impact with the wall, Hiccup's head hit the wood with a hollow thud, causing his knees to give out entirely and his eyes to go unfocused. Finally, the heir stilled, dazed and breathless.

Taking the obvious opportunity, Krogan dragged the boy over to the table and glared at Johann, pinning his prisoner down and shifting his grip on Hiccup's arms so that they were pressed against the hard wooden surface of the table. "Don't just stand there; hand me the rope." When said object was passed to him, he motioned to Johann once more. "Hold him."

Johann held Hiccup down, the boy's chest pressed against the table and his arms spread out to either side. Meanwhile, Krogan tied each of Hiccup's wrists to one of the table legs, so that his hands were gripping the edge of the wooden slab. A sharp kick was delivered to the back of Hiccup's knees, sending him crashing to the floor. The Rider felt the icy wood press painfully into his cheek, ribs and knees as he tried to free himself from the humiliating position; as he writhed, the rope around his wrists chafed agonizingly against his already raw skin, and his broken ribs protested silently as they suffered even more abuse against the edge of the table.

"Comfortable?" Krogan crooned from somewhere above.

Hiccup bit his lip and dug his fingernails into his palms, not answering. Johann, who still gripped his arms from behind, finally let go and circled around to stand in front of him. Hiccup felt the man's bony fingers slide briefly along his scalp before twisting through his hair and yanking his head up. "You know, Hiccup, I wasn't sure about this plan at first. I didn't think torture would work on you. But the more I'm forced to look at your horrendously irritating person, the more I'm convinced that this will be an educational experience for both of us." His blue eyes glittered darkly and he chuckled. "Don't you think so?"

Hiccup only scowled.

Johann's smile faded and without warning, he slammed Hiccup's head back down against the table. A pathetic sort of whimper escaped the Dragon Rider, and blood filled his mouth as he bit his lip. But still he said nothing.

Krogan had silently moved to stand behind Hiccup in the meantime, be now he held up the vial he had brought into the cell. It was bigger than Hiccup had first thought, probably the size of his fists stacked on top of each other. And in it, he knew, was the green, viscous liquid that was the Changewing acid.

Suddenly he felt the urge to break the silence. "You won't get away with this," he rasped. "You know I have allies across the archipelago, and my friends know where I am. Astrid and Dagur may not be here now, but they'll find me, and they will kill you-both of you." His mouth was set in a grim line, and his eyes were hard. "With or without my permission or assistance. The time will come, Krogan, when even I can't convince Dagur not to kill you. Maybe I won't even try. And whether or not they get here in time to get me out of here, you'll still pay for everything you've done." His voice was cold. "Hurting the Riders, nearly killing my dad… for that, I will make you pay."

Behind him, Viggo gasped softly. "Hiccup…"

There was a brief instant of vicious, icy-hot pain between his shoulder blades, before a bone- and flesh-piercing agony seemed to almost soak into him, numbing the muscles and seeming to target the whole of his torso, even though the logical part of his brain told him it was only his skin that had made contact with the acid. Completely caught off guard, Hiccup cried out and jerked upwards, wrists catching abruptly on the ropes that bound them. A second later, his head was forced back down against the table.

There was something about having his face ground against the wood that panicked him, as he felt his own hot, rapid breaths on his face and heard the vibration of his heartbeat through the table. There was a suffocating closeness of the air that made him want to vomit, and the sickening burning sensation in his back only magnified his nausea.

"What do you think, Hiccup?" Krogan asked. "Will this do the trick?"

"You can't make me help you," the heir rasped. He silently vowed not to allow Krogan to hear him scream; he may have yelled once but that was when he was caught off guard. He wouldn't allow himself to cry out again.

That same excruciating icy heat began between his neck and his right shoulder. It slowly started to trail down his back- across his ribs, parallel to his spine, dipping along the curve of his waist- he felt reflexive tears spring to his eyes and his muscles tensed. His breath hissed out through his teeth, but other than that, he remained silent. _Ignore it. Think of something else…_

It felt like it went on for hours, and soon the burns crisscrossed his back and sides in a gory pattern.. Krogan would pour the stuff on, Hiccup would start to feel that unbearable burning and nausea , and then he would make himself even sicker by trying not to scream.

Krogan growled under his breath, slamming the vial down. . "Grown men twice your size haven't been able to endure this for more than five minutes. It's been ten. Either you're just stubborn beyond belief, or you can't feel a thing…" he hesitated. "What if I put this on your face? Made you go blind? Or force it down your throat and kill you slowly from the inside?" Two icy fingers traced down the length of his arm, and he stiffened, before he felt hot breath on his cheek and heard Krogan's whisper. "I can destroy your life, Hiccup. I could brand you with a Slavemark and make you an outcast for the rest of your life… I can scar you so horrendously that your little girlfriend will never go near you. But that doesn't have to happen… all you have to do is surrender on behalf of your Riders."

"I can't," he whispered.

"You can't, you say?" Krogan mused, lifting his hand from Hiccup's arm. Hiccup flinched, preparing for the pain he knew would come. "Would this convince you?"

There was a soft _swish, flick, CRACK_ and a grunt rang out.. _What…?_ Then he realized… it hadn't been him. There was no new pain.

"Fine then. I know how you work, Hiccup. If you won't do it for yourself…maybe you'll do it for him."

 _Damn_.

"Don't listen to him, Hiccup," Viggo murmured, making Hiccup's heart sink.

"No," the heir protested. "Krogan, your fight is with me. Leave him out of it-"

"Then surrender."

Hiccup froze. I can't.

"Don't," Viggo stated calmly. The next instant— _swish, flick, CRACK_ — he inhaled sharply, and Krogan snickered.

"Stop it!" Hiccup cried, yanking against the ropes that bound him. "Let him be!"

"Why?" Johann asked abruptly, breaking his silence. Hiccup heard the sound of a knife being drawn, and suddenly his hands were free. A hand gripped his arm and dragged him up until he was at eye level with the man. "Why do you care?"

Hiccup froze. "Um…"

Johann narrowed his eyes. Then, without warning, he shoved Hiccup down to kneel on the floor, facing Viggo and Krogan. His knife slid up against the boy's throat and a hand gripped his hair. "Krogan, please continue."

Krogan was standing over Viggo's kneeling form, one hand pushing his head down while the other held… _oh, gods_. A whip. The ex-hunter's hands had been released and he was on his hands and knees. He didn't make a sound, and when Krogan lashed the whip down across his back, he only grunted and winced.

"Stop," Hiccup pleaded, briefly surprised at himself. Why was he begging for Viggo to be shown mercy? By all rights, he shouldn't care.

But he did.

Odin blast it all, he did.

"Do it to me instead," he murmured, avoiding Viggo's steady gaze. "Leave Viggo alone."

"Hiccup—" Viggo began, but was interrupted when Krogan started to speak again.

"Are you sure about that?" Krogan asked slyly. "I don't know how much more you can take, Hiccup."

The heir only scowled.

Johann moved away and took the whip, and Hiccup was left kneeling next to Viggo, his eyes lowered to the floor. He heard the swish-flick-CRACK of the whip, and pain exploded across his back as the brutal lash sliced through his ruined skin. A strangled groan made it past his lips before the lash fell again.

And again.

And again.

 _Swish-CRACK. Swish-CRACK. Swish…CRACK._

And then he screamed. It tore at his vocal chords and split the air, and once it happened once, it happened every time the lash fell.

Finally, Johann stopped. Hiccup's voice died away and he was left panting, a pathetic, pleading whimper of pain escaping him as he crumpled onto his side.

He felt a new burning sensation in his shoulder and looked down. Instantly he regretted it; the sight of the angry red, raw skin, seeping blood and some clear liquid, made his stomach turn. The skin was ruined, blistering already and starting to throb.

"Enough," came Viggo's strained voice. "Stop this madness, Johann, before you do something you'll regret."

"You talk too much, Grimborn," Johann said with a sneer. "Do you want what _he_ got?" he asked, gesturing violently at Hiccup with one hand.

"If this continues, you'll kill him," Viggo protested wearily.

The ex-trader looked down at Viggo with disdain. "Fine then. I needed some exercise today anyway."

And he drew the whip back once more.

line break*

When Johann and Krogan left, the cell was perfectly silent, except for Hiccup's soft, gasping sobs. As for Viggo himself… every movement hurt, but some stubborn part of him wouldn't allow him to show it. It had only been fifteen lashes, after all, but it had still hurt like Hel…

Hiccup rolled onto his hands and knees, a muffled groan escaping him as his ruined skin stretched. "Viggo… I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"It's my fault Johann went after you."

Viggo sighed. "Shut up, Haddock. I'm perfectly fine, and capable of being just as annoying as you. Don't give yourself all the credit."

"Liar."

"Among many other things." Viggo eyed the boy with concern. "Are you alright?"

"…no."

"Well I-" Viggo began, but suddenly the floor tipped sideways. He slid along the wall and landed in a corner, and recovered just in time to hear Hiccup's panicked yell as the heir was thrown against the wall.

A rumble of thunder echoed across the water, and a flash of light alerted them to the storm. Viggo looked up at the window, just in time to catch a glimpse of a man's flailing arms as he plummeted overboard. A deafening crunch filled the air as something crashed through the upper deck, and suddenly the door was slammed open.

"Grab them," a guard ordered.

"What's going on?" Viggo demanded as he gingerly got to his feet.

"The hold is filling with water, and Johann doesn't want you dead yet," one of the men explained, pointing out the door. "So unless you want to drown, you'd better cooperate."

Viggo allowed himself to be pulled up by the guards, and, with Hiccup being dragged in a similar fashion behind him, was taken from the room for the first time in weeks since his capture.

Once above deck, the first thing he noticed was that the mast was on fire. The second thing was the number of Dragon Hunters in the water, rather than on the boat.

The third was the Skrill hovering above them.

line break*

 **So, what did you think? Bit of a surprising ending, wasn't it?**

 **Oh, by the way- WE REACHED 100 CHAPTERS! So, in celebration, every person who reviews gets not only a virtual cookie, but a shout-out on my profile page and my Tumblr page telling everyone how awesome you are!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Yo my perps! I mean peeps! Stupid autocorrect. Have a chappie!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own, nor will I ever own HTTYD. Sorry.**

 **Shoutouts:**

 **Aspylady: Thanks for letting me know! Krogan is pretty horrible, yes. Also Johann. And yes, I have chocolate chip! *tosses you cookies***

 **Romantica 123: No, thank you for being such an amazing reader! I probably won't stop writing...I love it too much. Thanks, I'm glad you like the story so much!**

 **JChttyd: I love Skrills too... and you may be on to something...**

 **Massive HTTYD Fan: You may be right about the Skrill! And I love writing the bonding scenes**

 **pandamaster97720: Thanks!**

 **Pokey314: Thank you! Sorry this chappie took so long!**

 **StandingWind: I'm glad I make you smile!**

 **ScribblesTheVixen: Thanks! I'm glad you enjoy!**

 **Sealiman Dawntracker: Lol, thanks! Will do!**

 **Pluviophile15: Thanks!**

 **SweenTheSaltine: Lol, I get it:)**

 **Michi Haddock O'Brien: Hehe... surprise?**

 **r-a-e121: Thank you!**

 **Guest (Nova): Thank you! Yeah, Hiccup cares about Viggo whether he wants to or not. And vice versa. God bless you, you're one of my best reviewers!**

 ***pursuitpursuitpursuitpursuitpursuit**

 **On with the story!**

Chapter Ten

They had lost sight of Johann's ships. The thick storm clouds were so dense that by the time they cleared away, the ships were long gone.

Meaning they were drifting, in pieces, in the water.

Their crews had already been skeletal, but now there were only about twenty men, huddling onboard two dinghies. They looked sullenly up at the Dragon Riders as they descended.

"If you're looking for the prisoners, they're not 'ere," one of the Dragon Hunters called out.

Dagur stared at the man as Sleuther hovered.

"Prisoners?"

"You didn't know?" The man snorted. "Your little leader wasn't the only one Johann got. Of course, it's not likely you kept tabs on 'im…"

"Who?" Astrid demanded. "Who's the other prisoner?"

"Viggo Grimborn," The Hunter replied.

Dagur swore under his breath. "Why can't that man just die?"

"Never mind," Astrid said briskly. "Where are they?"

"Johann's ship was the only one to escape. The prisoners were on that'un. The Skrill decided to spare them for one reason or another."

"Where did they go?" Dagur asked.

The man shrugged. "I was a bit busy trying to keep my crew from drowning t'notice." He hesitated, then pointed north. "We were headed that way before the Skrill attacked. Maybe they kept going."

"Why are you helping us?" Astrid asked.

He shrugged again. "I'll be honest with you all. Some 'a the stuff Johann did to those two… it weren't right. No kid that age should'a gone through any 'a that." Then, without a word, he turned to his men. "Let's go."

"Thank you," Fishlegs called.

The Hunter turned and gave a brisk nod, smiling wryly. "Just don't let it slip that I helped you, or I'll lose my head, not to mention my job."

"Where are you headed?" Dagur inquired.

"There's an island about a day's journey from here. It'll take longer with these small boats, but we'll make it."

"Do you need help?" Fishlegs offered. "We could pull you to shore."

The man shook his head. "It'd be a bit suspicious to be seen with you lot. Bad for us both. We can make it- and Thor knows these lads need the exercise."

line break *

(Four hours earlier)

Hiccup gaped up at the Skrill. "Is that…?" he murmured.

Viggo met his gaze. "I'd know him anywhere."

The Skrill reared back, lightning crackling around its body, before it hesitated. Its amber eyes looked straight at Hiccup, and narrowed, before swiveling to Viggo. The purplish-black dragon hesitated, then turned and shot up into the sky, out of sight.

Viggo sighed heavily. "I had hoped he might know me… Ah, well."

"He did," Hiccup replied softly. "If he hadn't, you would be dead…once a dragon trusts you, there's almost nothing that can break that trust. He'll protect you."

"But he left."

Hiccup gave a weak grin. "Did he?"

Viggo hesitated, confused. "Well, yes—" he stopped, then continued in a whisper.. "You think he's following us?"

"It's what Toothless would do for me."

"I hardly think Tordenvær and I have a relationship comparable to yours and Toothless's."

"Well, you named him." Hiccup smirked. "That's a start."

Their voices were barely heard over the shouts of Dragon Hunters and the crackling thunder. Johann was barking orders, but paused briefly and took a few steps towards them. "Tie those two to the gunwale. And watch them, for Thor's sake. I don't want them to drown before I've finished with them."

line break*

It had been hours since the Skrill's attack. It was hot. So hot, in fact, that Viggo found himself missing the icy coldness of Devastating Winter. Sweat trickled down his neck into the broken skin on his back, and while he would have slept (Thor knew he needed it), it was impossible to rest. The same was not true for Hiccup, evidently. The heir was practically dead to the world, sleeping soundly for the first time in days.

The Hunters were in trouble- and by extension, so were Hiccup and Viggo. While the fire on the mast had been extinguished, the burned sail had beenHowever, one hunter was perched high up on what was left of the scorched beam, keeping watch.

The sea was flat and glassy, and perfectly silent except for the rhythmic grunts of the men rowing, and Krogan calling the strokes. Ironically, the lack of wind ensured that they made good time, as the ship glided smoothly through the still water straight for the next island.

But they couldn't yet see the island. And the setting sun suggested that they could miss it entirely.

However, with the darkening sky came a drop in temperatures, and the harsh light and its accompanying heat was replaced by the chilly grayness of dusk.

He briefly wondered if he might finally be able to sleep now that it was getting dark. No sooner had the thought crossed his mind than his eyelids grew heavy… and as the ship quieted and a cool northbound breeze blew across his face, he finally slept.

When he woke, it was to the shouts of a certain ex-trader to his men. What…? Johann's voice had risen a few octaves in panic, as he practically screamed at his subordinates. "Wake up!" the scrawny man ordered. "Wake up!" The rowers roused themselves groggily from where they had dozed off slumped across their oars, and looked around in confusion. Then they saw what Johann had seen-the dark mass of land that loomed over and ahead of them as they drew closer by the second.

But that wasn't all.

"Rocks!" Johann called. "We'll run aground!"

Sure enough, out of the darkness appeared the forms of huge, blunt-edged boulders scattered along the coastline- blocking every possible entrance.

"Row, idiots!" Johann shouted. "If we turn, we just might miss them—"

But he was interrupted by the panicked cries of the rowers as they seized their oars and frantically began to row, trying to stop the ship. In their defense, the boat did slow… but not quickly enough. All their efforts achieved was to reduce the speed of their crash.

They hit the first rocks with a horrific grating, crunching sound. Oars snapped. Planks splintered. The rowers were thrown forward over their broken oars. Johann screamed as he was hurled against the railing at the bow. Viggo and Hiccup were the only ones who weren't tossed around by the crash, as they were, of course, the only ones tied down.

And then, all at once, the noise stopped, as those onboard the ship looked around in dumb disbelief. Half the ship was aground, its hull impaled by spikes of earth. They were well and truly stuck.

"What…?" muttered Hiccup in confusion as he was roused from his sleep at last. "What's going— oh."

"Sleep well?" Viggo asked dryly.

Heavy footsteps alerted them to Krogan's presence. "We're going ashore," spoke the foreigner contemptuously. "I'm going to untie you both, but don't get too excited. There's nowhere for you to run."

"You don't say," Viggo replied, glancing around at the grey sea.

Krogan didn't reply, only knelt and used his dagger to cut through the ropes around Viggo's wrists before moving on to Hiccup. When both of them were free, Krogan looked down at them in disdain. "Get up, and let's go."

Viggo got to his feet, ignoring the pain in his back and extending a hand to Hiccup. Fingers trembling slightly, the boy took the offered hand and stood with some difficulty, involuntarily clinging to his benefactor's arm as his knees shook. Viggo didn't mind, but found himself wishing he could do more.

Krogan glanced back at him. "Carry the boy," he ordered. "He'll only slow us down."

Hiccup drew back. "I'm fine, really, I can walk—"

"Hiccup, you can barely stand," Viggo interrupted in a dry tone. "Now shut up and cooperate."

The heir hesitated, then nodded mutely.

Viggo easily lifted Hiccup, careful not to touch the open wounds on his back. Honestly, the boy was so thin he weighed almost nothing. Adjusting his grip slightly and doing his best to ignore the pain of his wounds, Viggo followed Krogan. Hiccup was stiff in his arms, obviously uncomfortable with the situation. Yet he eventually relaxed despite the pain he was in, just as Viggo jumped over the railing and landed in the shallow water with a splash.

Wordlessly, he followed Krogan and Johann towards shore, a thought forming within his mind. _What will happen now that we're stranded? Will the Hunters come for Johann, or will the Riders find us first? What if neither gets to us, and we die here?_

line break*

The cool night air, the fresh smell of vegetation, and the sound of waves crashing against the rocks made for a deceptively peaceful atmosphere on the island. On the contrary, however, that night on the rocky shoreline was one of the worst Hiccup and Viggo had experienced since their respective captures. The men were frustrated; not only had they wrecked, but the food was gone to boot. So the two prisoners, huddled together a short distance away from the group of Hunters and their roaring fire, were left just as hungry as their captors, perhaps more so. As if that weren't enough, Johann kept shooting them furious glares from across the camp, as though they had been the cause of the untimely wreck.

Hiccup was asleep, curled up on his left side with his bound hands tucked close to his chest; draped over his still figure was the rough blanket one of the Hunters had tossed their way. The heir had tried to insist that Viggo take it, but finally gave up when the man had stubbornly ignored him. Now Viggo sat between Hiccup and the Hunters, determined that nothing would happen to the boy. The fact that he had sworn to himself that he would protect his former arch rival still unnerved him, yet he knew that if he was ever going to earn the trust of the Riders, he would have to make sure he did everything in his power to protect their leader.

A voice startled him out of his thoughts, and he looked up to see Johann standing over him. He shifted slightly so that he could see both the trader and Hiccup, then glanced inquiringly at Johann.

Johann lowered himself to Viggo's eye level and frowned thoughtfully. "You seem unusually protective over him." He nodded towards Hiccup.

Viggo didn't react; he had mastered an excellent poker face over the years and knew how to hide something. "Do I, now?"

Johann narrowed his eyes. "Don't try to hide anything from me, Grimborn. You're constantly guarding the boy, even going so far as to take a beating in his stead. And he's the same way- trying to persuade me to leave you alone and use the acid on him instead. Something's changed since I brought him here, and I want to know what."

"Perhaps I'm only trying to right some of the wrongs I've done." Viggo spoke in a neutral tone, unsure what Johann wanted to hear.

"Don't tell me you've decided to walk the straight and narrow now," Johann scoffed. "It's far too late for you, just like it's too late for me. What are you trying to prove? You may have earned his trust for now, but he'll come to his senses eventually and realize he's made a foolish mistake in trusting you. He'll see you're just using him."

"Johann, yet again I'm shocked by the amount of utter idiocy you can display in a single sentence. I'm not using Hiccup for anything."

"I know how you work," Johann said with a sneer. "People are expendable—tools to be used and broken and discarded, then replaced. Hiccup's just another game piece, another person sent to an early grave because of your actions. Just like your brother."

Viggo felt his confidence waver. "How dare you speak of him? You weren't there to see what happened that day."

"But he died because of you," Johann replied. "You sent him out on a fool's errand which resulted in his death. He was just a pawn in your ultimate strategy. Just like Hiccup. And eventually, he'll wake up and realize that you've betrayed him, but it'll be too late. You'll use him, break him, and then throw him away."

"Why are you here, Johann?" Viggo interrupted.

"You have nothing to gain by this. If what you say is true, wouldn't that outcome benefit you?"

Johann studied him. "It would." Then, without another word, he stood and walked back towards the fire.

line break*

 **So yeah. The Skrill has a name now- Tordenvær! It's Norse for "Thunderstorm."**

 **Johann is up to something, but what?**

 **Poor Viggo may have to face his past sooner than he thinks.**

 **And my first OC appeared! The leader of the wrecked Hunters doesn't have a name yet, but he might appear again.**

 **Peace out,**

 **Elena**


	11. Chapter 11

**Eeeeyyyyyyo! I'm so sorry for not updating sooner!**

 **Shout-outs:**

 **pandamaster97720: Thank you! No kidding...not cool, Johann. Not cool.**

 **Massive HTTYD Fan: You shall see...the Skrill plays a very important part in this tale. And yeah...Johann's a jerk.**

 **Pokey314: Thanks! Yeah, it's interesting to picture Viggo carrying Hiccup, i want to emphasize their difference in not just size, but personality. Hiccup's in a very difficult position. Sure, he's gotten hurt before, and been kidnapped by known enemies, but this is different. Johann was a trusted (though annoying) friend, and now he's been discovered to be the HEAD of the Hunters, he's tortured Hiccup mercilessly and he's attempting to turn him against the one person who is making an attempt to help- Viggo. Hiccup is completely vulnerable in many ways.**

 **Aspylady: Yeah, it doesn't look like there's much hope for their escape...the Skrill better be following!**

 **ThePhoenixGhirl: No problem!**

 **JChttyd:** **Hiccup is in deep trouble. Poor guy...**

 **SweenTheSaltine: :)**

 **PutMoneyInThyPurse: Thank you:) I'll definitely fix that problem, i didn't realize i was doing it so often. I found the line break finally! Thanks for the advice!**

 **r-a-e121: NO PROBLEM XD**

 **Guest: Thank you! Good question... i hadn't considered it! We'll see...**

 **Guest: Lol, don't we all need protective dad Viggo?**

 **Michi Haddock O'Brien: I like this new guy too. Thank you! Yeah, I feel pretty bad for these two. I'm glad I got their characters right! You maybe onto something... Johann's a twisted dude.**

 **ScribblesTheVixen: Thank you! Maybe they will...we'll see!**

 **Pluviophile15: thanks!**

 **Echoflight21: I used Google Translate then looked up the result. I also looked at a couple of baby name finders.**

 **Guest (Rikki34): Thank you! Greetings from Texas! XD**

 **Nova: Lol, it's ok! I'm glad you like the Skrill's name! It's pronounced Tor(like Thor)den-vy-ur. Yeah, I thought it was funny when Hiccup slept through everything...I try to plug in little bits of humor just to remind everyone that not all is lost. I'm so glad you like the story, and I'll definitely check out yours! Would you consider making a account? That way I could message you...Thank you, and God bless you!**

 **Tahlibahli: (I'll respond to all 10 reviews here.) (ch. 1) Aww, thanks! (2)Viggo's alive...😍😍😊 (3)Lol...sorry... (4)Oh yeah, it's cool. I get death threats all the time so my pancakes will be well protected. (5)YASSS PROTECTIVITY! (6)oh yes. (7)hmmm...hehe (8)of course! I don't judge people if they have different religious beliefs, and i try not to be close-minded. Thank you! (9)hehe...sorry... (10)here's your chappie! Thanks for being considerate!**

 **TheHttydRaven: Cool username! I have considered it, yes! Maybe i will!**

 ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **On with the story!******************************

 ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **Oh, btw...anyone know where katurdi went? Just curious...******************************

Chapter Eleven

 _Use him, break him, and throw him away._

 _Just another game piece._

Viggo grunted in frustration and clenched his fists. "Shut up…" he said under his breath.

"You okay?" asked Hiccup, startling him out of his thoughts. Raising an eyebrow, Viggo glanced at Hiccup, who was propped up on one arm, rubbing his eyes blearily.

"What?" Viggo replied, skillfully feigning curiosity.

"I thought I heard you say something," Hiccup explained.

"Just calling Johann a few unflattering names."

Hiccup snorted. "Sometimes, Viggo, I feel like I don't know you at all."

 _You don't_ , he thought. But he allowed himself to smile. "You should sleep, Hiccup."

"I can't," he answered simply.

Viggo narrowed his eyes. Hiccup had a pained expression on his face, and he held his body unnaturally still, as though the slightest movement hurt. "What happened?" he asked.

Hiccup shrugged, the motion eliciting a sharp hiss of pain. "…nothing," he lied.

"Your wounds," Viggo realized. "They haven't been taken care of yet."

"Neither have yours," Hiccup answered. "I'm fine."

So that was it. He didn't want to seem weak. Viggo sighed. "Hiccup , you know what happens when a wound gets infected, don't you?"

Hiccup cast a meaningful glance at his stump and nodded.. "I do."

"If you died, what would happen to Berk?"

Hiccup froze, eyes wide. "Um…"

"They would have no heir, and you know who would end up being chief?" Viggo gave Hiccup a pained glance. "Your cousin, that buffoon Snotlout. And while I'm sure he means well, he's foolhardy and brash, and would lead your Riders on a revenge attack against Johann as soon as he heard of your death. And without your strategizing skills, they wouldn't stand a chance." He paused. "It's imperative that you live. Now let me see."

Hiccup shrank backwards as soon as Viggo reached for him. "I-it's okay, really. You don't have to—"

Viggo reached out with bound hands to grip the edge of the blanket and pulled, eliciting a strangled cry from Hiccup. The boy hunched his back and snatched the blanket back, a breathy sob escaping him.

Viggo frowned and pulled his hands back. What on earth? Then he saw it. The blanket had been bloodstained before, but now new crimson stains were starting to show. Biting his lip, Viggo realized that this would be a lot harder than he'd expected.

Not to mention he would have to put his pride aside.

* * *

"If his wounds get infected, he'll die," Viggo said in a harsh whisper. He leaned forward slightly and looked Johann in the eyes. "And I don't think he'll do you any good dead."

"Viggo, don't ask him for anything!" Hiccup rasped. "You don't know what he'll ask—"

"I'll allow this once, and only once," Johann interrupted. "Besides, the next time you need them, you'll be dead anyway."

Johann sent a man with the needed supplies and Viggo set to work. Dipping a finger in the bucket of water, he tasted the water and winced. It was just a bit salty so this might be a bit more difficult than he had expected. The blanket was stuck to Hiccup's skin, held there by drying blood and the sticky liquid that seeped from the acid burns. This was what Viggo had been afraid of— that he would have to remove the fabric and thus reopen the wounds. And to do that while causing as little pain as possible, he would have to use the oh-so-graciously provided saltwater.

Hiccup eyed him. "He gave us saltwater…didn't he?"

"Of course." Viggo grimaced. "This will sting a bit."

"Just get it over with," Hiccup replied with a sigh.

Viggo poured a small amount of water down Hiccup's back, then pulled gently at the edge of the blanket. The whole time, Hiccup sat still, his hands gripping handfuls of the fabric of his trousers and his eyes squeezed shut. His body trembled slightly with the effort of remaining still.

Once Viggo had dealt with the issue of the blanket, he ripped off a relatively clean corner and tossed the rest aside. Dipping the rag in the water, he swished it around before pulling it out and pressing it directly to Hiccup's back. Hiccup gasped and arched his back involuntarily, flinching away from the cloth, but Viggo kept it there, grabbing the front of Hiccup's shoulder with one hand and keeping him from pulling away.

Viggo was no healer, but he had learned enough over the years to know how to deal with wounds like these. How Hiccup was even conscious at this point, he couldn't comprehend. Out of all the injuries Viggo had ever sustained, burns definitely took the cake. After the incident on the Edge with the volcano, he had been bedridden for weeks, and in more pain than he had ever imagined. The fact that Hiccup wasn't screaming in agony right now told Viggo that the boy had felt pain far more severe than this. Probably when he lost his leg…

He couldn't risk rubbing the skin, so after a few seconds, he removed the cloth, submerged it in the water and repeated the process. After a few minutes he was satisfied and moved on to Hiccup's arms, before using two of the provided bandages to wrap the wounds. When he was done, he inspected his work. "It's not too tight, is it?" he asked quietly, and Hiccup shook his head.

"Hurts like Hel, but at least I won't die of an infection ," Hiccup replied. "All right, it's your turn."

* * *

Now Viggo was sleeping, practically dead to the world as he caught up on the sleep he had lost over the past few days. Hiccup sat facing the fire, bound hands resting on his knees as he watched the flames dance around. In a strange, calming kind of way, it reminded him of home; of the huge braziers in the Great Hall, the way they would suddenly flare up, sending a wave of heat through the room. The way his father would scowl at the smoldering coals and glance at Hiccup inquiringly. Then Hiccup would wave Toothless over and the Night Fury would fire a bolt of plasma into the coals, igniting the fire once more.

"Toothless…"

A wave of loneliness hit him like a Gronckle's tail bludgeon. Words could not express how much he missed his dragon.

"That dragon won't come for you."

Hiccup looked up and glared at Johann. "What do you want?"

Johann crouched before him and eyed him carefully. "Why is Viggo being so protective over you?"

The question caught Hiccup off guard. "…what?"

"He's been your greatest enemy for years, and now he's volunteering to take a whipping in your place. I know what he's done to you. Why do you trust him?"

"I don't! I mean, I—" Hiccup shook his head in frustration. "I don't know."

Johann shrugged. "Hiccup, we've known each other for more than twelve years, and yet I can't remember you ever being this gullible..."

"I fell for your tricks, didn't I?"

"Touché, but I'm a master of deception. And as such, I can tell you that you're a hard Viking to fool. But Viggo found a way into your circle that I somehow missed."

"He's not in my 'circle,' Johann, he's an ally in my fight against you."

"What makes you think he'll stand by you?" Johann inquired.

Hiccup scowled. "Why should you care?"

"I know you have some foolish dream to work with him to escape. Then you'll bring him back to the Edge and live happily ever after with one more ally and absolutely no hard feelings. You'll forget all about that lovely little brand on your shoulder and about all the dragons he killed. But eventually you'll realize that some people are not capable of change. And one day, you'll wake up to find your friends dead, your dragon muzzled, and the Edge burning; and Viggo's sword will be at your throat, ready to kill again."

Hiccup paled slightly. "That won't happen."

"Is that what you think?" Johann shook his head and sighed. "Do you know how I captured him? He had been taken in by some rogue Hunters who were still loyal to him. When I found them, he was gone, already running to save his own skin. I tried to lure him back by threatening to kill his men but he didn't lift a finger to help them. By the time I caught him he was the only one left. He abandoned those who would follow him anywhere, and they all died slow, painful deaths."

"You don't know everything, Johann," Hiccup retorted. "I—"

"'People are expendable,'" Johann quoted. "That's what Viggo believes. To him, every person is nothing more than a game piece, a pawn in his scheme. He won't hesitate to let you die if it means he gains something— Hel, he'll kill you himself."

Hiccup scowled. "I don't know what you're trying to do, Johann, but let me make this clear— I won't fall for your lies. I've learned my lesson and I won't be tricked again."

"You seem to have forgotten which of us is the prisoner," Johann replied calmly. He leaned forward until his grey eyes could peer directly into Hiccup's green ones. "You think that just because we're shipwrecked on a deserted island means I'm giving you a break? How little you know. Your pain is only beginning…" he paused and smirked . " _Dear_ Hiccup."

Hiccup shivered and glared at Johann. "Take your best shot, Johann."

Johann drew a hand back and slapped him. One hand flying up to his cheek, Hiccup gaped. Suddenly a thought crossed his mind. He wasn't tied up and the other Hunters were nowhere around. Maybe, just maybe…

He raised a hand to shield himself from a second blow then grabbed the arm and pulled, at the same time launching a kick into Johann's gut. The trader narrowly dodged then turned back. "Ah, I knew you still had plenty of fight. But don't worry— I'll change that."

Adrenaline surged through Hiccup and he clenched his fists. It was completely hopeless, he knew, but still he would fight. After all, without the 'fight' that Johann spoke of, Hiccup would have been dead a long time ago.

Johann stared him down for a long moment, then stood, calmly walking away. Surprised, Hiccup watched him leave, an odd mixture of confusion and relief pooling in his stomach. Then, exhaustion seeming to drag his limbs down like physical weights, he settled down on his side. Gradually, despite his shot nerves and aching body, he fell into a light, restless sleep.

* * *

Not far from the sleeping prisoners, two scaly, clawed, purplish-gray feet landed on the rocky beach with a heavy thud. Gleaming yellow eyes scanned the group of Hunters and landed on the two figures at the edge of the camp. The great black wings folded loosely against the scaled flanks which were unmarred except for a few long, wicked-looking scars. The great hulking form stepped towards the camp, its feet hitting the ground with barely a sound.

Bending down, the dragon sniffed deeply, inhaling the scent of the two prisoners. Briefly he recoiled, the metallic odor of blood filling his nostrils. The two men stank of exhaustion and fear and pain, but beneath all that was something else. A spark of memory ignited somewhere deep in in the dragon's subconscious; a memory of a gruff man who smelled of old dragon blood and yet was kind in a way… a gleaming blade illuminated by purple arcs of lightning…an unfamiliar weight on his back…a cry of agony as a feathered arrow slammed into a muscled shoulder. He knew one of these men. As for the other…he recalled shaking hands reaching towards him as a thin, wiry boy stepped hesitantly forward. A black beast shrieked and fired a violet blast; it collided in midair with a bolt of lightning. The same skinny human reached out to unlock the lock on a cage, his fearful green eyes staring into the dragon's menacing yellow.

 _Dragon master_. That was the boy's name. As for the man…the smell of leather and dragon-proof metal and festering guilt was unmistakable. _Friend_ …

 **Anyone want a fluffy ending? Too bad. But at least Tordenvaer considers Viggo his friend...**

 **Peace out,**

 **Elena**


	12. Chapter 12

**Oh my Thor, guys... 173 reviews. This has been an insanely awesome experience so far, and the story's only halfway done! I don't have time to do shoutouts for this chapter, but I wanted to get it out there for all you beautiful people.**

 **For the 200th reviewer, I will write a one- or two-shot of your request!**

 **May the odds be ever in your favor.**

 **On with the story!**

Chapter Twelve

The still, humid morning air was split by a hoarse, panicked yell. Viggo sat up groggily, looking around for the source of the cry, and was greeted by completely unfamiliar surroundings. Trees towered overhead, their leaves filtering the gray morning light. Instead of a rocky beach, he rested on a soft, damp forest floor, leaves crunching softly underneath him as he turned and craned his neck to get a full view of the woods. It was then that he finally saw what had woken him.

 _"…Tor?"_ he croaked.

There stood the Skrill only meters away, towering over the prostrate figure of Hiccup Haddock. Hiccup's hands were raised in defense, his eyes wide with the sort of confused terror of someone unexpectedly woken by a loud noise or abrupt blow. Tordenvaer, however, almost looked confused himself, his draconian features schooled into a puzzled expression as he stared at the boy beneath him. At the sound of Viggo's voice, however, the dragon turned his head abruptly and stared at the man. Recognition shone in the vivid yellow eyes, and Tordenvaer turned away from Hiccup, suddenly uninterested in the Dragon Rider.

Viggo reached out, grinning in childish delight as he felt the dragon's scales touch his outstretched hand. He wrapped his arms around Tordenvaer's head, uncharacteristically excited. "Hello there, old friend," he murmured.

Hiccup sat up and winced, looking on as the Skrill bounded in playful circles around Viggo. "That… is not something I thought I'd ever see," he said honestly. "So this is..."

"Tordenvaer," Viggo acknowledged, a real smile spreading across his face for the first time in the few weeks since Johann had captured him. He directed his next words to the dragon. "You know Hiccup, Tor. He saved us both, didn't he?"

Tordenvaer let out a purr-like growl and eyed Hiccup. The two stared at each other cautiously, until Hiccup reached out a shaking hand. He still couldn't stand, so Viggo beckoned Tordenvaer closer and helped Hiccup to his feet(foot). Hiccup swallowed anxiously but knew the Skrill remembered him. Hiccup had saved his life, hadn't he?

The cool scales against his palm startled him out of his thoughts. Tordenvaer growled again, shifting slightly to look Hiccup in the eye. They stared at each other for a long moment, then separated. It occurred to Hiccup that he had been trying to train this dragon for five years, and now that they had finally bonded it was nothing like he had expected. Watching Tordenvaer withdraw and turn his attention once more to Viggo, Hiccup felt a deep, longing ache in his chest as he thought of Toothless.

"Where are we?" he asked, hoping to distract himself from the thought of his dragon.

Viggo frowned. "I don't know. As far as I can tell, we're on the same island, but other than that… I'm afraid I haven't the slightest idea."

Tordenvaer nudged Viggo and walked towards the edge of the clearing. Following at a short distance, Viggo assisted Hiccup, who was leaning heavily against him. Upon entering the forest, leaves crunched beneath their feet with every step, and the thick canopy overhead turned the gray light even grayer, so that they were bathed in the shadows of the trees. Suddenly Tordenvaer stopped. He turned and jerked his head towards the edge of the forest, motioning them forward.

The sight that greeted them was nothing like what Viggo had expected. "You've outdone yourself, my friend," he said to Tordenvaer. "Thank you."

Directly in front of them the ground fell away in a steep drop-off. After several hundred yards the land evened off in a smooth slope, where thickly clustered trees stretched all the way to the beach. There, the Hunters' camp was visible, the men nothing more than ant-sized dots on the beach.

"They'll find us," Hiccup murmured. "Johann knows we're gone. It won't be long until he comes to find us."

"But with Tor's help, we should be able to avoid them long enough to rest and heal," Viggo said. "However, we need supplies, or we won't last that long."

Tordenvaer purred questioningly.

"You can help," Hiccup rasped. "Maybe he could get supplies from the ship and camp."

"You may be on to something." Viggo agreed. "If he took the supplies, Johann would simply think he'd landed on the wrong island and would start to rush his men. The faster they work, the sooner they'll leave."

"He won't leave without us," Hiccup said uncertainly. "Not as long as he has any hope of getting us back…" he trailed off and frowned. "What are you planning?"

"Johann and Krogan will only stop hunting us if we're broken or dead," Viggo explained, with growing confidence in his idea. "We're going to fake our deaths."

line break *

Nigel Gilsson wiped the sweat from his brow and combed his fingers through his wet blonde hair. The few sweat drops he had missed trickled onto his sunburned neck and stung.

"They've seen us!" the lookout shouted, and Nigel stood up abruptly, his thin form moving stiffly as he stood up for the first time in hours. "How long until we reach shore?" he asked.

Nigel and his men had caught sight of the island just before sunhigh. It didn't take long for them to notice the ruined Dragon Hunter ship stuck on the rocks, and Nigel was glad for their smaller boats. As they steered carefully through the rock-filled water, Nigel heard Johann's distinct shout and curled his lip. Thor, how he hated this presumptuous trader and his foreigner sidekick, having the audacity to overthrow _Viggo_ of all people and take over the Hunters, all the while keeping their former leader chained up in a cell below them. No, Viggo wasn't perfect, but at least he held a respect for his men and attempted to provide security and protection in exchange for their services. Good for nothing _veslingr (_ puny wretch) that he was, Johann did little else but exploit the riches that were rightfully Viggo's, and use them to pamper himself like some sort of royalty. And Krogan? He was a braggart and used his brawn and mediocre thinking skills to make decisions.

Nigel's entire crew agreed with him, of course, with few dissenters. They wanted Viggo back, but there was little they could do. Krogan's Flyers could easily take them down despite their numbers. There were twenty men in Nigel's crew, and probably several dozen within Johann's other Hunters who hated the ex-trader's guts. Hiccup Haddock symbolized a major opportunity for them because with his help, they could get rid of Johann. Or rather, with their help, he could get rid of Johann. That is, if he ever recovered from the horrors Johann put him through. Nigel had seen battle-hardened warriors go insane after the ex-trader's work.

"You all know why we're bothering to come to this Thor-forsaken place," Nigel told his crew. "why we're going back to Johann."

There were several nods, and Nigel smiled grimly. "We're going to rescue Hiccup Haddock and Viggo Grimborn."

line break*

"They can't have just disappeared!" Johann shouted. "Who was guarding them?"

"No one," Krogan replied calmly. "There was nowhere for them to run."

A scowl crossed Johann's face. He would find his prisoners, and when he did… Even stranded on a remote island, there were many tactics he could still use on Hiccup. He needed the boy broken, or he would never be able to satisfy his client. The mysterious Persian buyer whom Krogan served was very much interested in the "Dragon Conqueror," as Hiccup had been referred to, and he had offered a great sum for the boy. However, that was only if Hiccup could be broken and reformed, which was where Johann came in. Contrary to what he had told Hiccup, he wasn't really interested in having the boy work for him.

Perhaps he would simply let his men give Hiccup another beating…they always seemed to enjoy that. Alternatively, he could kill Viggo and break Hiccup that way. The two had grown strangely close over the past week and Johann had a sneaking suspicion that killing Viggo would send Hiccup over the edge. The third option (and the most appealing, in Johann's opinion) was the small vial of Triple Stryke venom in his pocket. It wouldn't do Hiccup any real damage, but it would probably feel like swallowing Changewing acid and dying of internal bleeding and burns, except without the dying bit. The stuff had been known to drive men insane…

Johann let out a frustrated growl. "Well, obviously they found somewhere!" He took a step towards Krogan. "Search the forest. I want them found. We are dealing with geniuses, Krogan."

"I certainly hope you have a plan," Krogan said, interrupting Johann's internal monologue. "Drago is growing impatient."

"Well, he's going to have to wait," Johann snapped. "I do have a plan, and I think Drago will be very pleased indeed. Now if you don't mind—"

"Sir!" called a Hunter, approaching. "The remainder of the crew from our other ship just landed onshore in two dinghies. There's twenty men led by Nigel Gilsson."

Johann narrowed his eyes. "Hmm…"

"Sir?" the messenger inquired.

"Tell Gilsson to come here. Krogan, begin the search."

"Fine." Krogan left grudgingly and the Hunter fled.

Minutes later, Nigel entered the tent, looking uncomfortable. "Sir?"

"Ah, Nigel." Johann turned and slapped the man on the back. "Glad you found us. By any chance did you see our friend the Skrill on your way here?"

The captain shook his head. "No, sir."

"And the Riders?"

Nigel hesitated. "We saw them heading towards the base. They paid us no mind, just kept flying,"

A frown crossed Johann's face. "Strange, that they would ignore you."

"Aye, sir. And a good thing, too. If they had caught us, we'd all be doomed."

"You're always so negative, my friend!" Johann exclaimed. "Lighten up. The Riders wouldn't dare attack us, not as long as we have-" he stopped. "...Ah."

"Sir?"

"The prisoners escaped last night," Johann said in a clipped tone. "But they're still on the island." He turned to his subordinate. "I want you to take half of your men and go with Krogan to search for them. He's traveling around to the other side of the island, and I want you to head for the forest and search there." His voice lowered. "I want them alive, but if Viggo stands between you and Hiccup…I want you to kill him."

line break *

 **Yes, Nigel is the Hunter captain! I love him.**

 **200 reviews...200 reviews... I look forward to writing that one-shot... of course, there's a few rules.**

 **(1) Nothing with explicit sexual content, slash (boyxboy) or femslash (girlxgirl).**

 **(2) Logically would be HTTYD, but several other fandoms are optional.**

 **(3) I can't write crossovers.**

 **(4) I prefer to only use OCs as minor characters.**

 **If you have an account, I'll PM you. If not, let's talk in the review section.**

 **Peace out,**

 **Elena**


	13. Chapter 13

Guys, I'm so sorry I haven't updated in so long! School and a new job really caught up with me last semester, and I started experiencing some depression on top of it all. But I'm back, and intend to update far more regularly. I won't do shout-outs this time because there's an insane number since last chapter.

By the way- congratulations to Massive HTTYD Fan and PutMoneyInThyPurse for winning the 200th review oneshot request! I plan on posting those as soon as possible.

And now, the chapter which I know you've all been waiting for!

Chapter Thirteen

Nigel felt a lump of dread in his throat cut off his air supply. "…Yes, Sir," he replied hoarsely. Trying to force himself to stay calm, he found himself imagining a scenario in which Johann knew what he was thinking, what he and his men had been planning only minutes before.

Johann studied him thoughtfully. "Good…"

Nigel turned to leave, but stopped short as Johann spoke. "Nigel, one more thing. I wanted to give you a warning— there are those who might betray you for being loyal to me rather than to Viggo. Watch yourself." His eyes narrowed in an unreadable expression.

"…yes, sir."

****line break****

"You're sure this will work?" Hiccup asked for what must have been the twentieth time.

"It will," Viggo replied wearily. "The odds of us surviving this are infinitely better than the odds of us living if we just flew off with Tordenvaer. This way, at least one of us will go completely unscathed. And that makes it worth the effort."

"Fine…I guess I'm just not used to being the bait, is all."

"It's very simple. We lure them to the cliff side, above the bay… then we jump. Johann assumes we're dead, and his hunt for us will end."

Hiccup frowned. It seemed too easy. "And… I assume Tordenvaer will be there to catch us?"

"Most likely."

"What if one of us gets hurt?"

"Then the other will be perfectly capable of helping."

"And if Johann senses a trap?"

"He'll be wrong."

Hiccup bit his lip. "Do you grasp how insane this plan is?"

"Undeniably so."

"Do you have a backup plan?"

"Yes. It's chances of success are slightly lower."

"Do I want to know what it is?"

"Quite possibly not."

Hiccup limped over to a nearby tree and sank to the ground. He had fashioned a makeshift crutch out of a stick, so at least he could stand without help, but in an odd way, he missed the cool metal of his prosthetic. Being without it made him feel almost naked. "This seems too simple. I'll admit, I've come to expect more details out of you."

Viggo grimaced. "I suppose it does seem rather easy. But I promise, this will work. Trust me."

Hiccup raised an eyebrow. _Does he grasp how insane this sounds?_

"Johann will never see this coming," Viggo promised.

Tordenvaer lifted his head suddenly, letting out a low growl of warning. Hiccup and Viggo fell silent, listening intently. A man's voice, raised in a shout, drifted to Hiccup's ears softly, and he glanced at Viggo, eyebrows raised in a question.

"Damn it," Viggo whispered. "They're here."

****line break****

Hiccup dragged himself along as quickly as he could with his crutch, hearing sounds of pursuit behind him. They hadn't seen him yet, thankfully, but he knew it was only a matter of time. Viggo was a few steps ahead, waiting for Hiccup despite how slowly the heir was moving.

An arrow whizzed by his right ear and stuck in a tree just ahead, and Hiccup froze in terror even as his mind screamed at him to run. It seemed like an eternity before he persuaded his body to keep moving, and he jerkily stumbled forward. He ran after Viggo. The man evidently hadn't noticed his hesitation. Trying his best to ignore the pain searing across the expanse of his torso, Hiccup forced himself to focus on moving forward- step, crutch, step, crutch. A stitch knotted itself up under his rib cage and breathing became much more difficult. It was almost a relief when something forced him to halt. His foot suddenly sunk into the ground, dragging his body to the forest floor. He fell forward hard on his right side and scrambled to get up, but his body refused to cooperate.

"Viggo!" he cried, feeling a sharp pain in his ankle as the bone protested its position. Another arrow flew past his head and he yelped, ducking.

Viggo was at his side in seconds, and the man dropped to his knees. He slipped an arm under Hiccup's shoulders and held him as Hiccup gingerly withdrew his leg from the hole.

"Let's go," Viggo hissed, and pulled Hiccup up. They continued on as quickly as Hiccup's incapacitated state would allow. Suddenly Viggo veered to the right, dragging Hiccup with him, and then the cliff was in sight.

Hiccup gasped for air, his leg nearly giving out completely as they ran. He would have fallen if not for Viggo supporting him. "Where's…Tor?" he asked, fearful that the Skrill wasn't going to save them. They were still several hundred meters from the rocky cliffs, and it was a steep uphill climb. As soon as they gained the high ground, Johann's men would see them and shoot them down in an instant.

"Dealing with the other half of Johann's men, I expect," Viggo replies.

Hiccup hesitated, unsure. "The…other half?" He shot a wild glance over his shoulder.

"Johann was planning to surround us."

"And you know this how?" Hiccup asked doubtfully.

Viggo didn't reply. Uneasiness settled in Hiccup's stomach, but he couldn't place the reason for his worry. Thankfully he didn't have to dwell on it for long—Viggo abruptly veered to the left and dragged Hiccup into the thick undergrowth of the forest. Hiccup yelped and swore in protest as Viggo yanked him to the ground by the arm, concealing them both in the undergrowth. Hiccup landed hard and turned his head towards the man indignantly. "Hey, what was that—"

Viggo scowled, and before Hiccup had time to react, the older man had roughly slammed a hand over his mouth, his fingers digging painfully into the boy's cheek. He pushed Hiccup down until he was lying flat against the ground. " _Shut up,_ " he hissed, crouching low to avoid being seen.

Hiccup was frozen still in shock. For a long, terrifying moment, he was back in a dimly lit cell, with chains on his wrists suspending him from the ceiling. A hand was clamped over his mouth, and another was wrapped around his throat. _Quiet,_ said a voice behind him. _We don't want that bothersome little girlfriend of yours to ruin our fun, now do we? It'd be a pity if she saw you like this, anyway._

Hiccup forced himself to snap back to reality, heart racing as he reminded himself that he wasn't there, he wasn't trapped with that monster anymore.

Except he _was._ Only the monster had become a little more friendly.

He realized that he had been staring at Viggo the whole time, eyes wide with horror. Viggo's face was stone. _What's going on?_ Hiccup wondered, caught off guard by the man's sudden aggressive behavior. His former nemesis didn't relax his hold, but finally looked away, and Hiccup breathed a tiny sigh of relief. Viggo was above him, crouching uncomfortably close.

Footsteps pounded on the ground in the clearing. Hiccup heard a bowstring being drawn, a sword being withdrawn from it's sheath. Johann's voice spoke an order—"I know they came this way. Find them."

Hiccup's blood ran cold. _Oh Thor. Please don't let them see…_ Viggo's fingers parted slightly over his mouth and he sucked in a breath. _Let me go,_ he wanted to protest.

Krogan's voice came from across the clearing. "Do you think they might have jumped?"

Johann snorted. "Viggo's far too egocentric to kill himself if there's any hope of escape."

"We could keep hoping that Viggo decides to betray the boy in an effort to save himself," Krogan mused. "Hiccup won't be going anywhere without him."

"Hiccup!" Johann called. "We don't have to do this the hard way. Come out."

Viggo tightened his hold on Hiccup, shooting the heir a look that warned him not to move or speak.

****linebreak****

Viggo's fingers involuntarily tightened around Hiccup's jaw. He grimaced inwardly, seeing the heir's eyes wide with fear and confusion. He hid his hesitation by giving Hiccup a hard look, silently warning him to stay still and quiet. Hopefully, the boy would eventually understand, and forgive him. For now, though, Viggo needed to maintain a hostile front. In the end, it would be worth it.

****linebreak****

"I'm terribly sorry about this, Hiccup," Viggo murmured. Hiccup hardly had time to comprehend the words before Viggo dragged him to his feet and stepped out of the brush.

Instantly every weapon in the clearing was trained on them. Hiccup wanted to protest, but Viggo's iron grip on his jaw prevented him from doing so. His head spun as he tried to understand what was going on. Had Viggo's friendliness been a ruse the entire time? Was this part of his plan?

Viggo wrapped his other arm around Hiccup's shoulders, pinning the boy's arms to his sides. Addressing Johann and Krogan, he tightened his grip on Hiccup.

"One step and he dies."


	14. Chapter 14

**Guys, I am SO SORRY for taking so long to update. I started my senior year of high school, and got accepted to my top university! I've been very busy with school, so I haven't really had time to write. I think my schedule's going to clear up though. I hope you guys still like the story!**

Chapter Fourteen

Dagur let out a whoop of glee and lowered the spyglass. Astrid jumped and glared at him. "What?" she grumbled.

"Land!" Dagur cried. "It's the island!"

Astrid straightened, some of the fire returning to her eyes. "Let me see."

Dagur tossed the spyglass to her and watched as she peered through the lens. Suddenly a grin spread across her face. "Oh, thank Thor," she sighed. "We're almost there." She passed the glass back to Dagur and twisted around in the saddle. "Guys!" she shouted. "We see the island!"

The twins, Fishlegs, and Snotlout straightened up in their saddles, exhaustion melting away. Ruff and Tuff let out twin whoops of delight. Fishlegs looked like he might burst with joy, and Snotlout just grinned.

"It looks about seven hours' flight, maybe less than six if we hurry," Dagur informed them. He looked through the spyglass again and, if it was even possible, his grin widened. "They're definitely there," he called. "There's wreckage on shore. A ship is there."

The riders, their spirits lifted by the promise of progress, pressed onwards. Astrid couldn't deny it was good to have some reassurance that their efforts weren't for nothing, but worry gnawed at the back of her mind. It had been a week since Hiccup had been kidnapped. He had suffered torture nd probably still was. Of course, he had gone through similar things before. He was a magnet for trouble after all. But Johann was different than Dagur or Alvin or Savage, or even Viggo. Not only was he smart, but he had no conscience. And he didn't care how much he had to sacrifice to get what he wanted.

******line break******

Viggo forced himself to ignore the way the fight seemed to completely leave Hiccup. The boy sagged in his arms, a shaky breath escaping him.

Johann gaped for a solid three seconds, then broke into a smile. "Bravo," he sneered, clapping slowly. "You don't disappoint, Viggo. I must say, I'm a bit surprised, but I suppose I always knew you weren't capable of change."

Viggo glared coldly at the man. "Let me go or I'll snap his neck where he stands. You need him, don't you? You can't afford to let him die."

Hiccup stiffened slightly but Viggo ignored him. He couldn't get distracted, not now.

"Let me live or I'll snap his neck where he stands. You can't afford to let him die, can you?" Viggo hissed.

Johann chuckled. "That's true, my friend. You really are much smarter than you look."

Viggo didn't reply, biting back a retort.

"Now tell me. Why on earth should I believe that someone as intelligent as yourself would be willing to sacrifice his only lifeline to gain the word of a man who has lied to him countless times? It makes no sense. Clearly you're leading me into some sort of trap."

Viggo felt his heart skip a beat. Would he have to take this further in order to convince Johann? As much as he had disliked it, he had thought ahead to more extreme ways of making Johann believe his ploy. None of them were very pleasant.

 _'_ _Please trust me, Hiccup,'_ he thought, knowing that this wouldn't be easy.

"Give me a blade, Johann," he ordered. "Give me a weapon and I'll be out of your hair."

*********line break*********

Hiccup's heart leapt into his throat and stuck there. He swallowed hard and wondered how it had come to this. Was Viggo really betraying him? Was this just a ploy to get Johann to let him go?

Or had their alliance been a ploy itself?

He remembered what Viggo had told him just seconds before.

 _"_ _I'm terribly sorry about this, dear Hiccup."_ In that moment, he had sounded exactly like the old Viggo, the one whom Hiccup had sworn to hunt down and defeat. The Viggo that had held him hostage aboard a dragon-proof ship while his friends were on an island searching for gold, completely oblivious to his absence. The Viggo who had placed a bounty on his head and sent his bloodthirst brother to collect him.

The only question was, was it real? Was that Viggo really back? Or was it just another trick designed to somehow get them out of this place alive?

Viggo stared hard into Johann's eyes and held out a hand. "Give me a blade," he repeated.

Krogan glanced at Johann, clearly unprepared for a situation like this. The tall foreigner looked even more uneasy when his leader gave a hesitant nod. "You'll give us the boy?" Johann repeated, a deep frown creasing his face.

Viggo nodded. "You have my word."

Johann turned to one of his men. "Give him your knife."

The man nodded, lowered his sword and drew his knife. Stepping forward, he flipped the knife around and held the handle out towards Viggo, his knuckles white. Viggo's eyes darted from Johann to Krogan, then finally to the soldier with the knife. He reached out to take it, but the man swiftly yanked it back and threw it-

Straight at Krogan's chest.

The tall foreigner's eyes widened in shock as all eyes turned to him. He stared at the knife handle sticking out of his chest, and then looked back up at Viggo. "You tricky little _bastard._ " Then his legs crumpled beneath him and he fell to the ground. He didn't move again.

The man who had thrown the knife drew his sword and thrust it into the air. "Dragon Hunters!" he bellowed, and the soldiers around him roared with approval, shaking their weapons and roaring in approval. The tension broken, Viggo relaxed and released Hiccup, catching him smoothly again as the boy nearly fell. Hiccup's face was pale, his skin clammy. His eyes were open, but he didn't respond as Viggo lowered him carefully to the ground and shook him gently.

The man turned to Viggo, extending the sword's hilt towards him. "Nigel Gilsson, at your service."

Viggo offered Nigel a grateful nod and glanced down at Hiccup. "Can you…?"

Nigel nodded. "Let's get him back to camp and we'll see what we can do."

*******line break******

 **Well... plot twist... I guess...? It almost seems as though this ordeal is over...**


End file.
